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IDENTIFICATION OF THE LARGER FUNGI




DEDICATION


To my parents who encouraged my interests in mushrooms and toadstools
and my wife who, later, was sympathetic to my studies and assisted in
the production of the manuscript.




  Hulton Group Keys

  IDENTIFICATION OF THE LARGER
  FUNGI

  by

  ROY WATLING, B.Sc., Ph.D., M.I.Biol.
  Principal Scientific Officer,
  Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh

  _Editor of series_: Antony R. Kenney, M.A., B.Sc.




  ©
  1973
  R. Watling
  A. R. Kenney
  ISBN 0 7175 0595 2

  First published 1973 by Hulton Educational Publications Ltd.,
  Raans Road, Amersham, Bucks.

  Reproduced and printed by photolithography and bound in
  Great Britain at The Pitman Press, Bath




PREFACE


This is one of a series of books intended to introduce field-biology to
students, particularly the sixth form and early university student. The
present work is ecologically biased in order to emphasise a rather
neglected aspect of the higher fungi.

Few books on fungi have ever been designed for students. This book is
aimed primarily at this level, but if the interested amateur is assisted
and encouraged by this same text my hopes will have been doubly
achieved. Many amateurs interested in higher fungi wish only to name
their collections, or know approximately what they are before sampling
them as an addition to their diet. An understanding of our commoner
species at an early age will allow the ‘budding’ mycologist to tackle
the much needed study of the more critical forms. Mycology is still at a
descriptive stage, but it is hoped this will soon be changed and fungi
of all kinds will be studied as part and parcel of courses in ecology.

It is of course quite impossible to cover all the species in such a
small volume as this present one, but it is hoped that the examples
which have been carefully chosen are sufficiently common throughout the
country for any student to collect them in a single season. The
examples, except for very few, in fact appear in the list of higher
fungi found about the Kindrogan Field Centre, Perthshire, Scotland,
compiled from the collections made by students attending my field course
there.

The present work is arranged in three parts: the agarics are dealt with
first, the non-agarics next, both with particular reference to their
major habitat preferences, and lastly a catalogue of those more
specialised habitats which are frequently encountered. All parts are
supported at the end by lists in tabular form of those species expected
to be found in any one habitat. Keys to the major groups, families and
genera, are included to widen the scope of the book and place the
examples chosen and illustrated in the text in their position in
classification.

In the description the synonymy has been very severely pruned and only
covers the commonly seen names; they are included as part of the general
information under each species. In order for the student to expand
unfamiliar names a list of references is added at the end of the work.
The common names of the fungi, whenever possible, have been adopted from
a list produced by Dr Large, the author of _The Advance of the Fungi_,
an exciting tale of fungal parasites. The authorities for the names of
the fungi described have been reduced to accord with the minimum
requirements set out by the Code of Botanical Nomenclature. After each
description a list of references to coloured plates is given and while
some of these illustrations are not of the highest quality they are
adequate, and, more important, they are widely available. Any technical
terms appearing in the description are explained in the glossary,
although they have been kept to a minimum; the difficulty of expressing
colours has been overcome by consistently referring to one colour chart
only, (a chart designed originally for the use of mycologists and
available from Her Majesty’s Stationery Office).

I have not indicated the edibility of a particular species unless there
is no doubt as to the edibility of it, related species and those species
with which it might be easily confused. Many fungi are notoriously
difficult to identify and when one has approximately 3,000 species of
larger fungi in the country the task is even more difficult. It would be
folly therefore to indicate edibility for all the fungi described in a
book such as this; the golden rule which should be adopted is not to eat
any of the fungi one collects in the woods and fields. A fault of most
popular treatments is that they are biased towards the human diet and
selection of species is done on this basis; in the present work
selection of examples within the 270 pages has been difficult and two
factors have been particularly considered to ensure that (i)
representatives of all the major groups of fungi and genera have been
covered and (ii) a coverage has been attempted of all the common
ecological niches.

I am fully aware that the taste of a fungus may be distinctive to that
species or to a group of closely related species, but it is only a spot
character and the tasting of one’s finds is neither necessary nor
advisable; indeed it is not used in this book. The odour, however, has
been indicated whenever distinctive.




CONTENTS


                                                                  _Page_
  Preface                                                              5
  Introduction                                                         9
    Where to look                                                      9
    Collecting                                                        10
    Examination                                                       11
    Microscopic examination                                           12
  Key to major groups of Larger Fungi                                 21
  A. Agarics and their relatives                                      22
    Key to major genera                                               22
    (i) Agarics of woodlands and copses                               27
      (a) Mycorrhizal formers                                         27
      (b) Parasites                                                   59
      (c) Saprophytes--Wood-inhabiting or lignicolous agarics         64
      (d) Saprophytes--Terrestrial agarics                            78
    (ii) Agarics of pastures and meadows                              95
      (a) Agarics of rough & hill-pastures                            95
      (b) Agarics of chalk-grassland & rich uplands                  108
      (c) Agarics of meadows and valley-bottom grasslands            114
      (d) Fairy-ring formers                                         118
      (e) Agarics of urban areas--lawn and parkland agarics          122
      (f) Agarics of wasteland and hedgerows                         126
  B. Bracket fungi and their relatives                               135
    Key to major genera                                              135
    (i) Pored and toothed fungi                                      140
      (a) Colonisers of tree trunks, stumps and branches             140
      (b) Destroyers of timber in buildings                          154
      (c) Colonisers of cones                                        158
      (d) Terrestrial forms                                          160
    (ii) Cantharelles and related fungi                              162
    (iii) Fairy-club fungi                                           166
    (iv) Resupinate fungi                                            176
  C. The Jelly fungi--Key to major groups with examples              179
  D. The Stomach fungi; puff-balls and their relatives--Key to
     major groups with examples                                      186
  E. Cup fungi and allies                                            198
  F. Specialised Habitats                                            207
    (i) Fungi of dung and straw heaps                                207
    (ii) Fungi of bonfire sites                                      216
    (iii) Fungi of bogs and marshes                                  222
      (a) _Sphagnum_ bogs                                            222
      (b) Alder-carrs                                                226
    (iv) Fungi of beds of herbaceous plants                          227
    (v) Fungi of moss-cushions                                       230
    (vi) Heath and mountain fungi                                    231
      (a) Moorland fungi                                             231
      (b) Mountain fungi & Basidiolichens                            236
    (vii) Sand-dune fungi                                            238
    (viii) Subterranean fungi                                        243
    (ix) Fungal parasites                                            246
  G. Appendix                                                        249
    (i) Species lists of specialised habitats                        249
    (ii) Glossary                                                    260
    (iii) Simple experiments with Fairy-rings                        264
    (iv) Development of the Agaric fruit-body                        266
    (v) References                                                   269
  H. Index                                                           271


_Cover transparency supplied by John Markham, F. R. P. S., F. Z. S._




INTRODUCTION


The term larger fungus refers to any fungus whose study does not
necessarily require more than a low-powered lens to see most of the
important morphological features. Using such a term cuts across the
existing scientific classification, for it includes the more obvious
fungi bearing their spores on specialised reproductive cells called
basidia, fig. 5, and a few of those whose spores are produced inside
specialised reproductive cells called asci. The term is useful, however,
even though it embraces a whole host of unrelated groups of fungi; it
includes the polypores, fairy-clubs, hedgehog-fungi, puff-balls and
elf-cups, as well as the more familiar mushrooms and toadstools--or
puddockstools as they are often called in Scotland. Specimens of all
these groups will find their way some time into the collecting baskets
of the naturalist when he is out fungus-picking, along with probably a
few jelly-fungi and less frequently one or two species of the rather
more distantly related group, the morels. The biggest proportion of the
finds, however, on any one collecting day in the autumn, when the larger
fungi are in their greatest numbers, will be of the mushrooms and
toadstools; these are, collectively, more correctly called the agarics.

The early botanists and pioneer mycologists of the nineteenth century
recognised the fact that the fungi both large and small are ecologically
connected to the herbaceous plants and trees among which they grow, but
many mycologists since have tended to neglect these early observations.
Although the importance of the fungi in the economy of the woodland,
copse, field and marsh is well-known, mycologists and ecologists alike
have been rather slow to appreciate that the fungi can be just as good
indicators of soil conditions, if not better, than many other plants.
Perhaps it is rash to attempt such a treatment as you find here because
we know so little of the reasons why a particular fungus prefers one
habitat to another. However, it is envisaged and hoped that, if a
framework is provided, accurate field-notes can gradually be accumulated
and many of the secrets yet to be uncovered explained.


_Where to look_

Fungi can be found in most situations which are damp at some time of the
year. Searching for fungi can begin as soon as the spring days become
warm, although even in the colder periods of winter several finds can
be made. In summer it gets very dry and this necessitates collecting in
damper areas, such as marshes, alder-carrs, swamps and moorland bogs.
After a heavy storm in summer, on the edges of paths and roadsides,
woodland banks, in clearings in woods and in gardens, fungi can be
collected within a few days of the rain, but collecting normally reaches
a climax in August-September, the precise date depending on the locality
and the individual character of the particular year.

All woodlands are worth visiting, particularly well-established woods
with a mixture of trees. Pure pine-woods do not seem to be as good as
pine-woods with scattered birch; plantations are often disappointing
except after heavy rain or late in the season, even well into November
in mild years. Pure birch and beech, the latter particularly when on
chalky soils, are excellent areas to visit. Oak is possibly not as good
but areas with willow and alder have many unique species. The edge of
woods, sides of paths or clearings are usually more productive areas to
search in than is the depth of the wood, and a small plot of trees can
be much more rewarding than a large expanse of woodland. After some time
one is able to judge the sort of place which will yield fungi. Rotten
and burnt wood are very suitable substrates for they retain the moisture
necessary for growth of fungi even in dry conditions, so allowing
fructification to take place.

Grasslands including hill-pastures, established sand-dunes, etc., are
often excellent, but of course they are much more dependent on the
weather to produce favourable conditions for fungal development than
woodland areas where the changes in the humidity and temperature are
less extreme; prolonged mist or mild showery weather favour the fruiting
of the grassland fungi. Dung in both woods and fields is an excellent
although ephemeral substrate; many species of fungi characterise dung
whilst others will grow in manured fields, on straw-heaps or where man
has distributed the habitat.


_Collecting_

The collecting of larger fungi should not be considered a haphazard
pursuit; careless collecting often results in many frustrating hours
being spent on the identification of inadequate material, which is also
not suitable after for preservation as reference material. A few good
specimens are infinitely better than several poor ones; one is always
tempted to collect too much and then collections are inevitably
discarded. Always try to select specimens showing all the possible
stages of development from the smallest buttons to the expanded caps.
Sometimes such a range is not possible and one must be satisfied with
either a couple or only one fruit-body.

Carefully dig up or cut from the substrate the entire fungus and handle
it as little as possible. A strong pen-knife or fern-trowel is admirable
for the job. The associated plants should be noted, especially trees,
and if one is unable to identify the plants or woody debris retain a
leaf or a piece of wood for later identification. One should note in a
field-notebook any features which strike one as of interest, such as
smell, colour, changes on bruising, presence of a hairy or viscid
surface.

For transporting home the specimens should be placed in tubes, tins or
waxed paper which are themselves kept in a basket. The smallest specimen
can go in the first, the intermediate-sized forms in the tins or waxed
paper and the larger ones laid in the basket or placed in large paper
bags; plastic bags are not suitable except for very woody fungi. Thus an
assortment of tins, tubes and various sizes of pieces of waxed paper are
essential before setting out on a collecting trip. The specimens should
be placed in the waxed paper such that they can be wrapped once or twice
and the ends twisted as if wrapping a sweet.


_Examination_

_Once home always aim at examining the specimens methodically._

The first necessity is to determine whether the fungus, which has been
collected, has its spores borne inside a specialised reproductive cell
(ascus) i.e. Ascomycete, or on a reproductive cell (basidium) i.e.
Basidiomycete. By taking a small piece of the spore-bearing tissue,
mounting in water, gently tapping it and examining under a low power of
the microscope this can be easily ascertained. The tapping out is best
done with the clean eraser of a rubber-topped pencil. There are several
different shaped asci and basidia; the latter structures are more
important in our study because the Ascomycetes are in the main composed
of microscopic members.

The following procedure is necessary for the examination of your find:--

Select a mature cap of an agaric from each collection, cut off the stem
and set the cap gills down on white paper, or if the specimen is small
or is a woody or toothed fungus, or consists of a club or flattened
irregular plate, place the spore-bearing surface (hymenium) face down on
a microscope glass slide. The smaller specimens must be placed in tins
with a drop of water on the cap to prevent drying out. Even with the
larger specimens it is desirable to place a glass slide somewhere under
the cap between the gills and the paper, and if possible to enclose the
species carefully in waxed paper or in a tin. Whilst you are waiting for
the spore-print to form, notes must be made on the more easily
observable features; one is not required at this stage to examine the
microscopic characters.

All the characters which may change on drying must be noted immediately,
and these include colour, stickiness, shape, smell and texture. A
sketch, preferably in colour, however rough, can give much more
information than many score words.

Cut one fruit-body, longitudinally down with a razor or scalpel or a
sharp knife if the fruit-body is woody, and sketch the cut surfaces,
fig. 1A-B. These sketches and the rest of the collection notes should be
made such that identification and future comparisons can be achieved.
Thus always note the characters in the same order for each description.
A table of the important characters is provided here, but this is meant
as a guide not as a questionnaire. The attachment of the gills, pores or
teeth to the fruit-bodies when once the fungus is in section should be
always noted (see p. 20).

The spore-print when complete should be allowed to dry under normal
conditions and then the spore-mass scraped together into a small pile. A
microscope cover-slip should be placed on the top of the pile and
lightly pressed down. The colour of the spore-print (or deposit) can
then be compared with a standard colour chart and the spores making up
the print examined in water under a microscope.


_Microscopic examination_

When one is more experienced with fungi it will be found necessary to
carry out many microscopic observations, but when commencing the study
it is necessary only to have an ordinary microscope; a calibrated
eyepiece-micrometer is an advantage as is an oil-immersion lens. An
examination of the spores is always necessary; the examination of
features such as the sterile cells on the gill and stem, etc., varies
with the fungus under observation. Spores should if at all possible be
taken from a spore-print and mounted on a microscope slide, either in
water or in a dilute aqueous solution of household ammonia. Although for
mycologists it is often necessary to measure spores to within a ½ micron
(µm) this book has been so arranged that one only really has to
distinguish between a spore which is small (up to 5 µm), medium (5-10
µm), long (10-15 µm), or large if globose and very long (if over 15 µm);
this is not strictly accurate, but serves the purpose for an
introductory text. It is important to describe the character of the
spore, i.e. ornamentations, whether a hole (germ-pore) is present at one
end and/or a beak (apiculus) at the other (fig. 5). With white or pale
coloured spores it is useful to stain either the spore or the
surrounding liquid with a dye--10% cotton blue solution is admirable, or
a solution of 1·5 g iodine in 100 ml of an aqueous mixture containing 5
g of potassium iodine and 100 g of chloral hydrate. Both these dyes must
be accurately made up if the study of the fungi is to be taken at all
seriously; because some of the chemicals used above are not normally
required by students, a chemist must make up the reagents for you. Often
the spores turn entirely or partially blue-black or pale blue or
purplish red in the iodine solution--a useful character.

[Illustration: Fig. 1. Dissection of a toadstool as recommended by the
author. For explanation see text.]

Material in good condition is always required and one of the first
things the student needs to do is train himself to collect sufficient
material in good condition. The steps by which all the structures of the
fungus used in the text can be observed are outlined below:--

Fig. 1 shows the cuts required to furnish suitable sections in order to
observe the various structures and patterns of tissue which are
important.

1. Carefully place the longitudinal section (AB) of the fruit-body which
has been sketched gill-face down under a low power or dissecting
microscope. Hairs or gluten on the cap, if present, will be made visible
by focusing up and down (figs. 2 and 3A) and/or those on the stem (fig.
3B). When any part of the cut fruit-body is not being examined retain it
in a chamber containing damp paper or moist moss; this will assist the
cells to retain their turgidity, for they frequently collapse on drying
and are difficult to observe except after performing often lengthy and
special techniques.

If only one fruit-body is available, then cut along CD and mount in a
tin box on a slide in order to obtain a spore-print (otherwise see
paragraph 6).

2. Cut off a complete gill (E) and quickly mount on a dry slide. Under
the low power of a microscope, the cystidia on the gill-margin will be
visible (fig. 4); it will be seen whether the spores are arranged in a
particular pattern (fig. 5) and whether the basidia are 2-spored or
4-spored. In white-spored toadstools it is difficult sometimes to
determine whether the basidia are 2- or 4-spored so one must confirm the
observations by other techniques.

[Illustration: Fig. 2.

Fig. 3.

Fig. 4.

Fig. 5.

Fig. 6.]

A section of the gill accompanied by a small piece of cap-tissue, as in
E, will confirm the presence or absence of noticeable cystidia (or
hairs) on the cap. Now mount the section bounded by FG and HI in a drop
of water containing either a drop of washing-up liquid and/or glycerine;
the soapy liquid helps to expel any water which may tend to cling to the
gill-margin amongst the cystidia and the glycerine stops the mount from
drying out whilst further sections for comparison are cut and examined.
It is at this time that the structure of the outermost layer of the cap
can be examined, e.g. whether it is made up of a turf-like structure;
the presence or absence of cystidia on the cap can be also confirmed
(fig. 7A-C). It is frequently necessary to tap the mount in order to
spread the tissue slightly and expose the elements; this can be done
very efficiently by light pressure from the end of a pencil to which an
eraser is attached. Cut off along line JK to eliminate marginal cystidia
from confusing the picture and mount both pieces separately.

3. Cut out a wedge of tissue from the fruit-body (L) so as to have
several gills attached to some cap-tissue; until one is familiar with
the variability of facial and marginal cystidia, carefully cut along the
line PQ (note: the cut is made one-third of the distance from the cap
margin, thus eliminating the possibility of large numbers of marginal
cystidia being examined in error for facial cystidia). Now make a second
cut along the line of RS so that finally a small block of tissue remains
(M).

Mount on a dry slide with the plane through PQ face down on the slide
and observe under a low magnification, to assess whether cystidia on the
gill-face are present or absent, and if present their general shape and
whether numerous or infrequent (fig. 8).

Mount in water/washing-up mixture as outlined above and tap gently with
the rubber attached to the end of a pencil; evenly distributed pressure
should be given. If the gills appear to be too close then rotate the
rubber a little whilst pressing in order to spread the tissue.

4. Using a low power of a microscope and looking down into the plane RS
of the unmodified block M or a similar block, one obtains by this simple
technique a very accurate idea as to the structure of the trama of the
gill (fig. 9). The organisation of this tissue is very important in
classification, some groups of toadstools having what has been described
as regular trama (fig. 9C), others irregular (fig. 9D), inverse (fig.
9B) or divergent (fig. 9A). This same tissue may be thick or sparse to
wanting, coloured or not. Such sections are often better than attempts
at very thin sections unless very specialised techniques are used. There
are few satisfactory thicknesses between the two extremes; the thick
sections you can do and the very thin requiring expert techniques.

[Illustration: Fig. 7.

Fig. 8.

Fig. 9.

Fig. 10.]

5. Take out a small block of tissue T as indicated in the figure (fig.
1). Mount immediately and repeat as in 3. This will allow the outer
layer of the cap to be more clearly seen (fig. 7A-C) and also the
structure of the flesh (fig. 10). The latter may be composed of a
mixture of filaments and ‘packets’ or ‘nests’ of rounded cells (i.e.
heteromerous), or of filaments, only some of which may be inflated (i.e.
homoiomerous); but when individual cells are swollen they never form
distinct groups. By very similar techniques it is possible to show that
the more woody fungi can have flesh composed of one of four types of
cells (Corner, 1932): these types depend on whether distinctly thickened
cells (plate 47) are present with the actively growing hyphae or not
(pp. 140-150), whether hyphae are present which bind groups of hyphae
together, etc. (plate 46).

6. Remove stem along line CD and cut out small blocks of tissue as
indicated (U, V and W). Mount immediately and examine as in paragraph 3,
for cystidia, etc. (see fig. 3).

Whilst all these sections are being cut and processed a second
fruit-body, if available, should be set to drop spores; this is done by
cutting off the cap from the stem and placing it either entirely or in
part, and with gill-edges down, on a slide in a tin.

7. Z is a ‘scalp’ of a cap; a thin sliver from the cap is placed on a
slide in a drop of water (modified with washing-up liquid, etc. as
above). After placing a cover-slip over the tissue it is tapped gently;
this will show if the cap is composed of globose to elliptic elements or
if it is composed of strictly filamentous units (figs. 6A & B). Care
must be taken not to reverse the section when transferring it to the
mountant, either by turning the scalpel or by allowing the surface
tension of the liquid to pull the section upside down. The construction
of any veil fragments will also be seen in this mount, and if a loose
covering of veil is present this should be removed before observation so
that it does not obscure the fundamental structures.

8. Examine the stipe of the fruit-body used above under a low power or
with a dissecting microscope in order to ascertain whether there are any
remains of veil and/or vegetative mycelium. If found, mount immediately
in the solution containing iodine mentioned above and examine.

Of course it is difficult to carry out the above system the first time
and be successful in seeing everything, indeed in being able to cut all
the sections 1-8. Practice makes perfect, so why not practise with a ¼
lb of mushrooms from the grocer before the autumn season starts. In this
way you will have overcome the difficulties without having to experiment
with your collections.

  CHARACTERISTICS FOR THE IDENTIFICATION OF HIGHER FUNGI WITH CAPS
  Locality           G. Ref.                   Date
  Habitat notes      soil type                   pH
                     vegetational community
                     solitary; in troops or rings
  Draw or preferably paint exterior and vertical section of fruit-body
  MACROSCOPIC CHARACTERS
  CAP
    General characters:
      diameter                shape                  consistency
      colour:                 when immature          when mature
                              when wet               when dry
    Surface
      dry, moist, greasy, viscid, glutinous, peeling easily or not,
      smooth, matt, polished, irregularly roughened, downy, velvety,
      scaly, shaggy
    Margin
      regular, wavy                       incurved or not
      smooth, rough, furrowed             striate or not
    Veil, if present
      colour                              abundance or scarcity
      distribution at margin, whether appendiculate or dentate
      consistency, whether filamentous, membranous
  GILLS, or pores or teeth etc.
      remote, free, adnate, adnexed, emarginate, subdecurrent, decurrent
      crowded or distant                 distinctly formed or not
      shape                              interveined or not
      easily separable from the cap-tissue or not
      consistency (whether brittle, pliable, fleshy or waxy)
      thickness                          width
      colour:         when immature              at maturity
      number of different lengths or number of layers
      obvious features of gill-edge, tube-edge, e.g. colour, consistency
  STEM
      central, eccentric or lacking              shape
      dimensions: length                  thickness
      hollow or not
      colour:         when immature              when mature
      consistency (whether fleshy, stringy, cartilaginous, leathery or
      woody)
      surface characters (whether fibrillose, dry, viscid, scaly or
      smooth)
      characters of stem-base
    Veil, if present    characters
    Volva, if present   characters
    Ring, if present
      whether single or double         whether membranous or filamentous
      whether persistent, fugacious or mobile      whether thick or thin
      whether apical, median or basal
  FLESH
      colour in cap:            when wet           when dry
      colour in stem:           when wet           when dry
      colour changes if any when exposed to air
      presence or absence of milk-like or coloured fluid
      (note: colour when exuded on fruit-body immediately and after some
      time and when dabbed on to a clean cloth or paper handkerchief and
      exposed to the air).
  SMELL  before and after cutting   --relate to a common every day odour
  MICROSCOPIC CHARACTERS
  BASIDIOSPORES
      colour in mass                      colour under microscope.
      shape                size           type of ornamentation, if any
      size and shape of germ-pore, if present
      iodine reaction of spore-mass:--blue-black to dark violet
      (amyloid); red-purple (dextrinoid); yellow-brown or brown
      (non-amyloid)
  BASIDIA          number of sterigmata
  CAP-FLESH        type of constituent cells
  GILL-TISSUE      type and arrangement of cells between adjacent
                   hymenial faces
  CAP-SURFACE      type of cells composing the outermost layer--whether
                   filaments or rounded cells
  STERILE CELLS--CYSTIDIA
      presence or absence of sterile cells:--
      on gill-edge               on gill-margin
      on cap                     on stem
      shape, estimation of size, thick or thin-walled, hyaline or not
      types of ornamentation, etc.




Key to the major classes of Larger Fungi


  Spores borne externally on stalks on a clavate to cylindrical cell
                                                         Basidiomycotina
  Spores produced within a clavate, cylindrical or subglobose cell
                                                            Ascomycotina


Key to major groups based on character of basidium and fruit-body shape

  1. Basidia either produced in a hymenium or in a mass, and until
     maturity contained within a closed fruit-body        Gasteromycetes

     Basidia produced in a layer of cells (hymenium) and exposed to the
     air before the maturity of the spores (Hymenomycetes)             2

  2. Basidia simple, a single cell (fig. 5) (Homobasidiae)             3

     Basidia usually septate, or if simple then fruit-body gelatinous
     and often collapsing to form a skin when dried (Heterobasidiae)   4

  3. Fruit-body usually fleshy, soft and easily decaying (putrescent),
     hymenium spread over the surface of gills, ridges or within tubes
                                                      Agaricales (p. 22)

     Fruit-body with hymenium smooth or spread-out on teeth, ridges or
     plates or if within tubes then fruit-body tough and leathery
                                                Aphyllophorales (p. 135)

  4. Basidia divided                                                   5

     Basidia simple and apex drawn out into two long necks Plate 61 (p.
     185)                                        Dacrymycetales (p. 180)

  5. Basidia divided transversely by one to three horizontal septae
     Plate 60 (p. 183)                           Auriculariales (p. 182)

     Basidia divided into two or four cells by vertical septae Plate 61
     (p. 185)                                       Tremellales (p. 184)




A. AGARICS AND THEIR RELATIVES


Key to major genera

   1. Spores distinctly coloured in mass and coloured individually under
      the microscope                                                   2

      Spores not, or faintly, coloured in mass and hyaline under the
      microscope                                                      25

   2. Spores blackish or some shade of brown                           8

      Spores pinkish                                                   3

   3. Stem laterally attached to the cap or absent
                          _Claudopus_ (and some species of _Clitopilus_)

      Stem centrally attached to the cap                               4

   4. Stem with a cup-like structure enveloping the base   _Volvariella_

      Stem lacking any special structure at its base                   5

   5. Gills not attached to the stem (free), or with part attached to
      and descending down the stem (decurrent)                         6

      Gills attached to the stem but not descending down the stem      7

   6. Gills remote to free from the stem                       _Pluteus_

      Gills distinctly attached and descending down the stem
                                _Clitopilus_ (see also _Eccilia_ p. 102)

   7. Gills broadly attached to the stem (adnate)             _Entoloma_

      Gills narrowly attached to the stem (adnexed)
                                                  _Leptonia_ & _Nolanea_

   8. Stem laterally attached to the cap                    _Crepidotus_

      Stem centrally attached to the cap                               9

   9. Spore-print some shade of brown                                 10

      Spore-print blackish to purplish black                          18

  10. Spore-print bright rust-brown                                   11

      Spore-print dull clay-brown or ochraceous                       16

  11. Stem with the veil girdling the stem (ring), or cobweb-like
      (cortina)                                                       12

      Stem without the veil girdling the stem or when present then
      easily lost                                                     13

  12. Stem with distinct ring or ring-zone   _Pholiota_ & related genera

      Stem with cobweb-like veil or faint filamentous ring-zone
                                            _Cortinarius_ & _Gymnopilus_

  13. Gills attached to the stem but not descending down the stem
      (adnexed to adnate)                                             14

      Gills free of the stem, or distinctly attached to and running down
      the stem (decurrent), and then often joined together at the apex
      of the stem or at their base                                    15

  14. Cap-surface composed of rounded cells                   _Conocybe_

      Cap-surface composed of filamentous cells               _Galerina_

  15. Gills free of the stem and the whole fruit-body very fragile
                                                             _Bolbitius_

      Gills attached to and running down the stem (decurrent), easily
      separable from the cap-tissue and frequently veined at apex of
      stem                                                    _Paxillus_

  16. Cap scaly, fibrillose and roughened                      _Inocybe_

      Cap smooth, greasy or viscid                                    17

  17. Cap-surface composed of rounded cells                   _Agrocybe_

      Cap-surface composed of filamentous cells  _Naucoria_ & _Hebeloma_

  18. Gills or complete fruit-body becoming liquefied         _Coprinus_

      Neither the gills nor fruit-body collapsing into a slurry of cells
                                                                      19

  19. Gills free to remote from the stem or attached and descending down
      the stem (decurrent)                                            20

      Gills attached in some way to the stem but not descending down the
      stem (adnate to adnexed)                                        21

  20. Gills decurrent; stem possessing a cobweb-like veil
                                         _Gomphidius_ and _Chroogomphus_

      Gills remote or free; stem possessing a usually persistent ring
                                                              _Agaricus_

  21. Gills distinctly spotted or distinctly mottled; stem stiff but
      breaking with a snap when bent; growing on dung or in richly
      manured areas                                          _Panaeolus_

      Gills not spotted or distinctly mottled; stem cartilaginous or
      not, and fruit-body growing on dung or not                      22

  22. Gills broadly attached to the stem (adnate) and with a veil
      girdling the stem                                     _Stropharia_

      Gills narrowly attached to the stem (adnexed) or with concave
      dentation near the stem (sinuate), or if adnate then lacking a
      ring                                                            23

  23. Gills with concave indentation near the stem (sinuate) and cap and
      stem with a cobweb-like veil                           _Hypholoma_

      Gills attached to the stem but lacking a distinct concave
      indentation near the stem                                       24

  24. Stem stiff but breaking with a snap when bent; edge of cap
      incurved at first and cap-surface composed of filamentous cells
                                                             _Psilocybe_

      Stem fragile; edge of cap straight even when young and cap-surface
      composed of rounded cells                            _Psathyrella_

  25. Fruit-body fleshy and readily decaying, often firm but never tough
                                                                      26

      Fruit-body tough and not easily decaying                        47

  26. Parasitic on other agarics                              _Nyctalis_

      Not parasitic on other agarics                                  27

  27. Spore-bearing layer on fold-like often forked gills or simply on
      irregularities                                                  28

      Spore-bearing layer (hymenium), on distinct well-formed gills   29

  28. Spore-bearing layer on fold-like gills              _Cantharellus_

      Spore-bearing layer on surface of irregularities     _Craterellus_

  29. Cap easily separable from the stem                              30

      Cap not easily separable from the stem                          31

  30. Stem with girdling veil (ring) and/or with a persistent cup-like
      structure at the base (volva); cap usually with warts or scales
      distributed on its surface                               _Amanita_

      Stem with a ring but lacking a volva; cap surface powdery, hairy
      or scaly                                _Lepiota_ & related genera

  31. Cap, stem and gills brittle; stem never stiff and either exuding
      a milk-like juice or not; spores with spines or warts which stain
      blue-black in solutions containing iodine                       32

      Cap, stem and gills soft or if stem stiff then snapping when bent;
      gills never brittle                                             33

  32. Fruit-body exuding a milk-like fluid                   _Lactarius_

      Fruit-body not exuding milk-like fluid                   _Russula_

  33. Gills thick, watery and lustrous (waxy) or with a bloom as if
      powdered with talc; often brightly coloured                     34

      Gills not waxy and rarely over 1·5 mm thick                     36

  34. Gills rather watery and lustrous (waxy); spores smooth          35

      Gills rigid not watery, with powdery bloom; spores with distinct
      spines                                                  _Laccaria_

  35. Fruit-body with a distinct veil and growing in woods; cap often
      viscid or pale coloured                              _Hygrophorus_

      Fruit-body lacking a veil and usually growing in fields; cap
      usually brightly coloured and sometimes viscid         _Hygrocybe_

  36. Stem with girdling veil (ring) and/or stem not attached to the
      centre of the cap (eccentric)                                   37

      Stem central and lacking a ring                                 38

  37. Stem central and possessing a ring                    _Armillaria_

      Stem not centrally attached to the cap
                                 members of the ‘_Pleurotaceae_’ (p. 74)

  38. Stem fibrous                                                    39

      Stem stiff only in the outer layers                             42

  39. Gills with a concave indentation near the stem (sinuate)        40

      Gills attached to and descending down the stem (decurrent)      41

  40. Spores with warts which darken in solutions containing iodine
                                                           _Melanoleuca_

      Spores not so colouring in solutions containing iodine
                                           _Tricholoma_ & related genera

  41. Spores with warts which darken in solutions containing iodine
                                                         _Leucopaxillus_

      Spores not so colouring in solutions containing iodine
                                           _Tricholoma_ & related genera

  42. Gills thick and with rather blunt edges
                                      _Cantharellula_ & _Hygrophoropsis_

      Gills thin and with distinct and sharp edges                    43

  43. Gills attached to and descending down the stem (decurrent); cap
      often depressed at the centre and sterile cells absent from the
      gills and the surface of the cap         _Clitocybe_ & _Omphalina_

      Gills attached to the stem but not descending down the stem
      (adnate to adnexed) or if descending then distinct sterile cells
      on the gills, cap and stem                                      44

  44. Cap-edge straight and usually striate when young; cap thin and
      somewhat conical and gills descending down the stem or not
                                               _Mycena_ & related genera

      Cap-edge incurved, non-striate and cap rather fleshy; gills not
      descending down the stem                                        45

  45. Stem dark and woolly at least in the lower half and the cap
      viscid; fruit-bodies growing in clusters on tree-trunks
                                                            _Flammulina_

      Stem not dark and woolly                                        46

  46. Cap viscid and stem usually rooting; fruit-body growing directly
      on wood or attached to wood by long strands or cords of mycelium
      (rhizomorphs)                                      _Oudemansiella_

      If cap viscid then fruit-body neither attached to wood by cords of
      mycelium nor stem with a rooting base  _Collybia_ & related genera

  47. Stem central and gills often interconnected by veins; cap can be
      dried and later revived, purely by moistening
                                            _Marasmius_ & related genera

      Stem not attached to the centre of the cap and fruit-body although
      persistent not easily revived to natural shape after once being
      dried                                                           48

  48. Spore-print blue-black with solutions containing iodine         49

      Spore-print yellowish in solutions containing iodine            50

  49. Gills toothed or notched along the edges             _Lentinellus_

      Gills even along their edges and not toothed            _Panellus_

  50. Gills appearing as if split down their middles     _Schizophyllum_

      Gills not splitting                                             51

  51. Gills notched or toothed along their edges              _Lentinus_

      Gills even along their edges and not toothed               _Panus_

  52. Spore print yellowish, purplish, black or pink                  53

      Spore-print some shade of brown, but without purplish flush     56

  53. Spore-print yellowish or pinkish                                54

      Spore-print purplish brown or blackish                          55

  54. Spore-print yellowish                                  _Gyroporus_

      Spore-print pinkish                                    _Tylopilus_

  55. Spore-print purplish brown                          _Porphyrellus_

      Spore-print blackish and spores ornamented         _Strobilomyces_

  56. Cap glutinous and stem with or without girdling veil (ring);
      within the tubes the sterile cells (cystidia) cluster together
                                                               _Suillus_

      Cap at most viscid and then only in wet weather and sterile cells
      within the tubes individually placed                            57

  57. Stem-surface covered with distinct black or dark brown or white
      then darkening scales; spore-print clay-brown with or without a
      flush of cinnamon-pinkish brown                         _Leccinum_

      Stem-surface covered completely or in part with a network or
      pattern of faint lines or pale yellow or red-rust but never black
      dots; spore-print olivaceous buff       _Boletus_ & related genera


(i) Agarics of woodlands and copses


(a) Mycorrhizal formers


~Leccinum scabrum~ (Fries) S. F. Gray

  Birch rough stalks or Brown birch-bolete.

  _Cap_: width 45-150 mm. _Stem_: length 70-200 mm; width 20-30 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 1.

  Cap: convex and becoming only slightly expanded at maturity, pale
  brown, tan or buff, soft, surface dry, but in wet weather becoming
  quite tacky, smooth or streaky-wrinkled and cap-margin not overhanging
  the tubes.

  Stem: white, buff or greyish, roughened by scurfy scales which are
  minute, pale and arranged in irregular lines at the stem-apex, and
  enlarged and dark brown to blackish towards the base.

  Tubes: depressed about the stem, white becoming yellowish brown at
  maturity, with small, white pores which become buff at maturity and
  bruise distinctly yellow-brown or pale pinkish brown when touched.

  Flesh: watery, very soft in the cap lacking distinctive smell and
  either not changing on exposure to the air or only faintly becoming
  pinkish or pale peach-colour.

  Spore-print: brown with flush of pinkish brown when freshly prepared.

  Spores: very long, spindle-shaped, smooth, pale honey-coloured under
  the microscope and more than 14 µm in length (14-20 µm long × 5-6 µm
  broad).

  Marginal cystidia: numerous and flask-shaped. Facial cystidia: sparse,
  similar to marginal cystidia.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Found in copses and woods containing birch
  trees, or even accompanying solitary birches.

  _General Information_: This fungus is recognised by the pale brown
  cap, the white, unchanging or hardly changing flesh and the cap-margin
  not overhanging the tubes. There are several closely related fungi
  which also grow with birch trees but they need some experience in
  order to distinguish them. This fungus was formerly placed in the
  genus _Boletus_, indeed it will be found in many books under this
  name. Species of _Leccinum_ are edible and considered delicacies in
  continental Europe. The majority can be separated from the other
  fleshy fungi with pores beneath the cap, i.e. boletes, by the black to
  brown scaly stem and rather long, elongate spores. The scales on the
  stem give rise to the common name ‘Rough stalks’ which is applied to
  this whole group of fungi.

  _Illustrations_: F 39C; Hvass 253; LH 122; NB 155⁶; WD 89¹.


~Suillus grevillei~ (Klotzsch) Singer

  Larch-bolete

  _Cap_: width 30-100 mm. _Stem_: width 15-20 mm; length 50-70 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 2.

  Cap: convex or umbonate at first, later expanding and then becoming
  plano-convex, golden-yellow or rich orange-brown, very slimy because
  of the presence of a pale yellow sticky fluid.

  Stem: apex reddish and dotted or ornamented with a fine network,
  cream-coloured about the centre because of the presence of a ring
  which soon collapses, ultimately appearing only as a pale yellow zone;
  below the ring the stem is yellowish or rusty brown, particularly when
  roughly handled.

  Tubes: adnate to decurrent, deep yellow but becoming flushed
  wine-coloured on exposure to the air, with angular and small
  sulphur-yellow pores which become pale pinkish brown to lilaceous or
  pale wine-coloured when handled.

  Flesh: with no distinctive smell, pale yellow immediately flushing
  lilaceous when exposed to the air, but finally becoming dingy
  red-brown, sometimes blue or green in the stem-base.

  Spore-print: brown with distinct yellowish tint when freshly prepared.

  Spores: long, ellipsoid, smooth and pale honey when under the
  microscope, less than 12 µm in length (8-11 µm long × 3-4 µm broad).

  Marginal cystidia: in bundles and encrusted with amorphous brown, oily
  material. Facial cystidia: similar in shape and morphology to marginal
  cystidia.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Found on the ground accompanying larch
  trees either singly or more often in rings or troops.

  _General Information_: This fungus is easily recognised by the poorly
  developed ring, overall golden-yellow colour and pale yellow
  viscidness on the cap which comes off on to the fingers when the
  fruit-body is handled. There are several closely related fungi
  which also grow with coniferous trees, e.g. _Suillus luteus_ Fries,
  ‘Slippery jack’, but many need experience in order to identify them.
  All these fungi were formerly placed in the genus _Boletus_, because
  of the fleshy fruit-body with pores beneath the cap. The larch-bolete
  receives its common name from the close relationship of the fungus
  with the larch. On drying _S. luteus_ and _S. grevillei_ may strongly
  resemble one another but the former can be distinguished when fresh by
  the chocolate brown, sepia, or purplish brown cap and the large
  whitish, lilac-tinted ring.

[Illustration: Plate 1. Fleshy fungi: Spores borne within tubes]

[Illustration: Plate 2. Fleshy fungi: Spores borne within tubes]

  Species of _Suillus_ are edible and rank highly in continental
  cook-books, although they have disagreeably gelatinous-slimy caps, a
  character, in fact, which helps to separate them from other fleshy
  pore-fungi.

  _Illustrations_: F 41a; Hvass 257; ML 187; NB 104⁴; WD 84².


~Boletus badius~ Fries

  Bay-coloured bolete

  _Cap_: width 70-130 mm. _Stem_: width 34-37 mm; length 110-125 mm.
  (36-40 mm at base).

  _Description_: Plate 3.

  Cap: hemispherical, minutely velvety, but soon becoming smooth and
  distinctly viscid in wet weather, red-brown flushed with date-brown
  and darkening even more with age and in moist weather to become
  bay-brown.

  Stem: similarly coloured to the cap but paler particularly at the
  apex, smooth or with faint, longitudinal furrows which are often
  powdered with minute, dark brown dots.

  Tubes: adnate or depressed about the stem, lemon-yellow but
  immediately blue-green when exposed to the air and with angular,
  rather large similarly coloured, pores which equally rapidly turn
  blue-green when touched.

  Flesh: strongly smelling earthy, pale yellow but becoming pinkish in
  centre of the cap, and blue in the stem and above the tubes when
  exposed to the air, but finally becoming dirty yellow throughout.

  Spore-print: brown with a distinct olivaceous flush.

  Spores: long, spindle-shaped, smooth, honey-coloured under the
  microscope and greater than 12 µm in length (13-15 µm long × 5 µm
  broad).

  Marginal cystidia: numerous, flask-shaped and slightly yellowish.

  Facial cystidia: scattered and infrequent and similar to marginal
  cystidia in shape.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Found in woods, especially accompanying
  pine trees, but often found fruiting on the site of former coniferous
  trees, even years after the trunks or the stumps have been removed.

  _General Information_: This fungus is recognised by the rounded,
  red-brown cap, coupled with the pale yellow flesh and greenish yellow
  tubes, both of which become greenish blue when exposed to the air.
  There are several species in the genus _Boletus_ which stain blue at
  the slightest touch or when the flesh is exposed to the air, e.g. _B.
  erythropus_ (Fries) Secretan, a common bolete with a dark olivaceous
  cap, orange pores and red-dotted stem.

  The flesh of some species of _Boletus_, e.g. _B. edulis_ Fries,
  however, remains unchanged or at most becomes flushed slightly
  pinkish. Although many people say they recognise _B. edulis_, the
  ‘Penny-bun’ bolete--a name derived from the colour of the cap, there
  is some doubt as to whether the true _B. edulis_ is common in Britain
  as we are led to believe. _B. edulis_ and its relatives are highly
  recommended as edible (see p. 35). _B. badius_ is also edible, but it
  is ill-advised to eat any bolete which turns blue when cut open.

  _Illustrations_: _B. badius_--F 38c; Hvass 248 (not very good); LH
  191; NB 109⁵; WD 85¹. _B. edulis_: F 42a; Hvass 246; LH 191; NB 143³.


General notes on Boletes

There are nearly seventy boletes recorded for the British Isles and
evidence of others which have as yet not been fully documented. As a
group they are characterised by being fleshy, possessing a central stem
and producing their spores within the tubes, and not on gills as in the
common mushroom. It is the first character by which the boletes differ
so markedly from the other pored fungi, such as the ‘Scaly Polypore’
(see p. 140).

The boletes have long been classified in the genus _Boletus_, but
instead of referring all the pored, fleshy fungi to a single large genus
several genera are now recognised. The separation of these genera is
based on differences in colour of the spore-print and differences in the
anatomy of the tubes, cap and stem, etc., e.g. members of the genus
_Suillus_ have colourless or pale coloured dots on the stem exuding a
resin-like liquid in wet weather, which is clear and glistening in some
species but turbid and whitish in others, gradually darkening and
hardening so that the stem is ultimately covered in dark brown or
reddish smears or spots; members of the genus _Leccinum_ on the other
hand never exude liquid and have coarse or fine roughenings on the stem
which are usually dark, but may commence white and ultimately darken
depending on the species; many species of _Boletus_ possess a very
distinct raised network all over the stem, whilst others have it present
only in part, or have minute, often brightly coloured, dots replacing
it.

[Illustration: Plate 3. Fleshy fungi: Spores borne within tubes]

Within this single, yet not particularly large, group of fungi, several
biological phenomena are demonstrable. There is good evidence that the
majority of British boletes are mycorrhizal; several species are known
to be associated only with one species of tree or group of closely
related tree-species. Thus _Suillus grevillei_ and _S. aeruginascens_
(Secretan) Singer grow in association with larch trees; _S. luteus_ and
_Boletus badius_ in contrast grow in association with pine trees;
_Leccinum scabrum_ with birch trees; _L. aurantiacum_ (Fries) S. F.
Gray, with poplar trees and _L. quercinum_ (Pilát) Green & Watling, with
oak trees.

_Boletus edulis_ can be separated into several distinct subspecies which
are associated with different trees; the two commonest subspecies are
those associated with birch and with beech trees. It is well known that
although present in this country during the warmer periods of the
Ice-Age, larch neither survived the intense cold of the last advance of
the ice nor migrated back into Britain after the ice had melted. Thus
all larches which we see in Britain have been planted by man. There is
little doubt that mycelia of many fungi were introduced along with these
plants very probably including the mycelium of the larch-bolete. A
similar pattern can be seen with other introduced trees, although not to
such a marked degree, e.g. spruce trees. The beech tree, however, is
native to the south of England, unlike the larch returning to this
country after the ice had melted; it has been planted extensively
outside its former range in northern areas of the British Isles taking
with it its associated fungi. There is some evidence that some stocks of
beech and fungi have been introduced from continental Europe in
comparatively recent times.

A parallel, yet inexplicable association is found between the bolete
_Suillus bovinus_ (Fries) O. Kuntze and its close relative _Gomphidius
roseus_ (Fries) Karsten where the mycelium of two fungi are found
intertwined forming a close association! Parasitism although rare is
also found amongst the boletes, and an uncommon parasitism at that--a
fungus on a fungus; for example in Britain although infrequent _Boletus
parasiticus_ Fries grows attached and ultimately replaces the
spore-tissue of the common earth-ball (_Scleroderma_, see p. 192).

Those fungi which grow on dead and decaying substrates are called
saprophytes and although the greater number of higher fungi would be
included in this class of organisms the character is infrequent amongst
the boletes. One British example of this type of fungus is the rare
_Boletus sphaerocephalus_ Barla which grows on woody debris.

Chemists have long been interested in boletes, for as noted above the
flesh of some species when exposed to the atmosphere turns vivid
colours, a feature often incorporated into the Latin name, e.g. _Boletus
purpureus_ Persoon, from the purple colours produced whenever the
fruit-body is handled. The reaction appears to be an oxidation where in
the presence of an enzyme and oxygen a pigmented substance or substances
are produced. What the significance of these colour-changes is in nature
is as yet unknown; however, what is interesting is that many of the
chemicals involved are unique and have only recently been analysed
completely; they are related to the quinones.

There is little doubt that it is this rapid and intense blueing of the
flesh of many boletes that has lead to a belief that they are poisonous.
It is uncertain whether there are any truly toxic species of _Boletus_
but several have unpleasant smells and tastes which make them very
unattractive. _Boletus edulis_ is the important ingredient, however,
which gives the distinctive taste to so-called dried mushroom soup.
Thousands of fruit-bodies are collected annually in the forests of
Europe to be later dried and processed for incorporation into soup.
Boletes appear to form an important part of the diet of several rodents
and deer and in Scandinavia in the diet of reindeer.

Probably one of the most obscure of our British boletes is
_Strobilomyces floccopus_ (Fries) Karsten, the ‘Old Man of the Woods’.
It has a black, white and grey woolly, scaly cap and stem, and the flesh
distinctly reddens when exposed to the air. The spores are almost
spherical, purple-black in colour and covered in a coarse network when
seen under the microscope. All these characters readily separate
_Strobilomyces_ from all other European boletes; however, in
Australasia, members of this and related genera form a very important
part of the flora.


~Chroogomphus rutilus~ (Fries) O. K. Miller

  Pine spike-cap

  _Cap_: width 30-150 mm. _Stem_: width 10-18 mm; length 60-120 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: convex with a pronounced often sharp umbo, wine-coloured, flushed
  with bronze-colour at centre and yellow or ochre at margin, viscid but
  soon drying and then becoming paler and quite shiny.

  Stem: yellowish orange, apricot-coloured or peach-coloured, streaked
  with dull wine-colour, spindle-shaped or narrowed gradually to the
  apex from a more or less pointed base.

  Gills: arcuate-decurrent, distant, at first greyish sepia then dingy
  purplish with paler margin, but finally entirely dark purplish brown.

  Flesh: lacking distinctive smell and reddish yellow or pale tan in the
  cap, rich apricot- or peach-colour towards the stem-base.

  Spore-print: purplish black.

  Spores: very long, spindle-shaped, smooth, olivaceous purple and
  greater than 20 µm in length (20-23 × 6-7 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: cylindrical to lance-shaped and up to 100 × 15 µm.

  Facial cystidia: similar to marginal cystidia.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Found in pine woods, usually solitary or
  in small groups. Fairly common throughout the British Isles and
  characteristic of Scots Pine woods.

  _General Information_: This fungus can be distinguished by the
  purplish or wine-coloured cap and the gills being pigmented from
  youth. There is only one other British species of this genus, i.e. _C.
  corallinus_ Miller & Watling.

  _Chroogomphus_ is separated from _Gomphidius_ by the flesh having an
  intense blue-black reaction when placed in solutions containing
  iodine, and the gills being coloured from their youth. In many books
  _Chroogomphus_ is placed in synonymy with the genus _Gomphidius_.
  However, _Gomphidius glutinosus_ (Fries) Fries, _G. roseus_ (Fries)
  Karsten and _G. maculatus_ Fries all have whitish gills when immature
  which gradually darken, and their flesh simply turns orange-brown in
  solutions of iodine. _G. glutinosus_ is uniformly grey in colour and
  is most frequently found under spruce and other introduced conifers:
  _G. roseus_ has a pale-pinkish coloured cap and white stem, and grows
  with pine; _G. maculatus_ grows under larch and is flushed lilaceous
  at first but becomes strongly spotted with brown when handled.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 192; LH 213; WD 83^{a}.

[Illustration: Plate 4. Fleshy fungi: Spores blackish and borne on
gills]


~Paxillus involutus~ (Fries) Karsten

  Brown roll-rim

  _Cap_: width 50-120 mm. _Stem_: width 8-15 mm; height 30-75 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: at first convex with a strongly inrolled, downy margin, but then
  expanded and later frequently depressed towards the centre,
  clay-coloured, ochre or yellow-rust, slightly velvety but becoming
  smooth or sticky particularly in wet weather and readily bruising
  red-brown when fresh.

  Stem: central or slightly eccentric, thickened upwards,
  fibrillose-silky, similarly coloured to the cap but typically streaked
  with red-brown particularly with age.

  Gills: ochre or yellow-brown then rust and finally darker brown,
  decurrent, crowded, often branched and united about the apex of the
  stem; easily peeled from the flesh with the fingers and rapidly
  becoming red-brown on handling.

  Flesh: thick, soft and with slightly astringent smell and yellowish to
  brownish but becoming red-brown after exposure to the air.

  Spore-print: rust-brown.

  Spores: medium-sized, ellipsoid, smooth, deep yellow-brown and rarely
  greater than 10 µm in length (8-10 × 5-6 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: numerous lance-shaped or spindle-shaped.

  Facial cystidia: scattered and similar in shape to marginal cystidia.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Found on heaths and in mixed woods,
  particularly where birch has or is now growing, or even accompanying
  solitary birch trees.

  _General Information_: This fungus is easily recognisable by the
  strongly inrolled, woolly margin of the cap and yellow-brown gills
  which are easily separable from the cap-flesh. _P. rubicundulus_ P. D.
  Orton is similar but grows under alder and has yellow gills unchanging
  when handled and dark scales on the cap. _P. atrotomentosus_ (Fries)
  Fries and _P. panuoides_ (Fries) Fries both grow on coniferous wood
  and have smaller spores; the former is recognised by the dark brown to
  almost black shaggy stem and the latter by the shell-shaped cap devoid
  almost completely of a stem.

  _Illustrations_: F 41c; Hvass 189; LH 185; NB 115⁸; WD 70².

[Illustration: Plate 5. Fleshy fungi: Spores brown and borne on gills]


~Cortinarius pseudosalor~ J. Lange

  _Cap_: width 60-125 mm. _Stem_: width 15-25 mm; length up to 180 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: bell-shaped or bluntly conical only slightly expanding with
  maturity, smooth or wrinkled at centre but often furrowed at the
  margin, slimy, brown with a distinct olive flush when in fresh
  condition and becoming ochraceous brown and shiny when dry.

  Stem: usually swollen to some degree about the middle, slimy
  particularly towards the base, whitish throughout when young except
  for a faint amethyst or violaceous flush in the lower part; as the
  slime dries the stem becomes shiny and the outer surface breaks up
  into fibrillose scales or scaly, irregular ring-zones.

  Flesh: lacking distinct smell, white with ochraceous flush in the cap,
  white in the stem, thick and soft in the cap but fibrous in the stem.

  Gills: adnate, broad, rather thick, frequently veined and distant,
  ochraceous brown and finally deep rust-brown.

  Spore-print: rust-colour.

  Spores: long, slightly almond-shaped in side view, finely warted
  throughout and not less than 12 µm in length (13-14 × 7-8 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: ellipsoid or club-shaped, hardly different from the
  surrounding undeveloped basidia.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Found on the ground in copses and woods
  especially those containing beech.

  _General Information_: Recognised by the conical, grooved cap and the
  slimy spindle-shaped stem with a distinct violaceous flush; this
  fungus is often misnamed _C. elatior_ Fries but this is a much less
  common fungus. There are several closely related fungi, but these grow
  with other tree-species and need much more experience to distinguish
  one from the other. _C. pinicola_ P. D. Orton is one such species
  growing in the litter under _Pinus sylvestris_, Scots Pine; this
  species is fairly common in the remnant pine woods of Northern
  Scotland. The large size, sticky or glutinous cap and stem indicate
  that this fungus belongs to _Cortinarius_, subgenus _Myxacium_.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 145; LH 162; NB 119; WD 60¹.

[Illustration: Plate 6. Fleshy fungi: Spores brown and borne on gills]


General notes on Cortinarii

The genus _Cortinarius_ is the largest genus of agarics in the British
Isles, indeed in Europe and North America--perhaps in the world. It
includes some of our most beautiful agarics, yet it is one of the least
satisfying to the mycologist because of the difficulties experienced in
identifying collections--partly because many species are so seldom seen.

_Cortinarius_ contains just under two hundred and fifty recognisable
British species, although recent research has shown that many more are
yet to be described from this country as new to science. Except for some
very characteristic species the individual members within the genus
_Cortinarius_ are often very difficult to separate one from the other;
however, _Cortinarius_ is one of our least difficult genera to recognise
in the field owing to the presence when mature of rust-coloured gills
and a cobwebby veil which extends from the margin of the cap to the
stem. This structure is termed a cortina (Fig. 14) and in young
specimens covers the gills with delicate filaments. As the cap expands
the cottony or cobwebby filaments are stretched and either disappear
entirely or may collapse to form a ring-like zone of filaments on the
stem. In some species a second completely enveloping veil is also found,
and this veil is viscid in one distinct group of which _C. pseudosalor_
already described is a member. The gills in the genus are variable in
colour when young although constant for a single species; they may be
lilaceous purple, orange, brown, red, yellow-ochraceous or tan, but
ultimately in all members at maturity they become rust-colour. The
spores under the microscope are richly coloured, yellow to red-brown and
are frequently strongly warted; in mass they are rust-brown and this
character coupled with the presence of the cobweb-like veil
characterises the genus.

Within the genus _Cortinarius_ there is a wide range of characters
varying from species with distinctly sticky caps and stems, some with
sticky caps and dry stems to those with both dry caps and stems. A few
species are very large and fleshy whilst others are quite slender and
many of the latter rapidly change colour on drying out and are then said
to be hygrophanous. However, although there is such a large spectrum of
characters in a single genus the species all have in common the cortina
and rust-coloured gills, the latter often appearing as if powdered with
rusty dust.

Utilising the characters mentioned above this very large genus can be
split into the following six sections, called by the mycologist
subgenera:

  a. Large to medium sized fleshy agarics with viscid caps and
  stems--_Myxacium_

  b. Large, fleshy agarics with viscid or tacky caps when fresh but dry
  stems--_Phlegmacium_

  c. Large to medium sized agarics with dry, scaly or humid caps and dry
  stems which if orange tawny are robust--_Cortinarius_

  d. Medium, rarely large, agarics with dry, silky to innately
  fibrillose caps, slender stems and frequently with at least part of
  the fruit-body yellow, orange or reddish--_Dermocybe_

  e. Medium to small agarics with silky fibrillose, non-hygrophanous
  caps which may become tacky in wet weather and then usually with
  robust, clavate-bulbous stems--_Sericeocybe_

  f. Small, less frequently medium or large agarics, all with distinctly
  hygrophanous caps--_Hydrocybe_.

In several continental books some or all of these divisions are
recognised as distinct genera in their own right. The subgenus
_Telamonia_ which occurs in many texts was formerly thought to differ
from _Hydrocybe_ in the presence of a universal veil; the universal veil
is a second veil which completely envelopes the fruit-body when it is
young and is in addition to the cortina. However, the modern treatment
would seem to suggest that the presence of the universal veil is not of
the utmost importance and so the two subgenera are incorporated into
one. The name _Hydrocybe_ reflects the character of changing colour as
it dries out because of the loss of water. Within each subgenus the
species are distinguished by the colour of the young gills and of the
cap, the veil colour and texture, and microscopic characters of the
spores, particularly their size.

The majority of species of _Cortinarius_ are mycorrhizal and like the
boletes possess very specific relationships with tree species. Thus some
are typical of coniferous woodland and others typical of deciduous
woodland in general, whilst others typify woods of a particular tree,
e.g. beech, oak, birch, pine, larch. Some species are characteristic of
woods on limestone or chalky soils (calcareous) whilst others are
characteristic of woods on sandy, heathy acidic soils. For example,
_Cortinarius armillatus_ (Fries) Fries which is found in damp woods and
possesses one or more cinnabar-red or scarlet zones on the stem and red
fibrils at the stem-base appears to be connected with birch. Several
species are associated with native trees whilst others have undoubtedly
been introduced from abroad. They are very important in the economy of
the woodland ecosystem.

One of the most beautiful and easily distinguished of our British
species is _Cortinarius violaceus_ (Fries) Fries which has uniformly
deep violet-coloured stem and cap and coloured cystidia on the
gill-margin, a character unusual in _Cortinarius_.

No species are known to be truly poisonous and many species are known to
be edible, but many are too small to be of any value. Some of the larger
species are regarded as good to eat, but frequently are too scarce. Thus
the necessity for experience to recognise the different species, coupled
with their often unpleasant tastes make them an unimportant group of
agarics for eating.


~Russula ochroleuca~ (Secretan) Fries

  Common yellow russula

  _Cap_: width 50-100 mm. _Stem_: width 20-35 mm; length 50-100 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 7.

  Cap: yellow-ochre or dull yellow becoming paler with age, or flushed
  faintly greyish green, convex but soon expanding and becoming flat or
  depressed in the centre, smooth, or granular when young and slightly
  tacky in wet weather, faintly striate at the margin.

  Stem: white at first then flushed slightly greyish, smooth or
  wrinkled, firm at first but quickly becoming soft and fragile.

  Flesh: brittle, firm at first then soft, white, yellow under
  cap-centre.

  Gills: white at first then flushed pale cream-colour, brittle, adnexed
  to free, rather distant.

  Spore-print: faintly cream when freshly prepared.

  Spores: medium-sized, hyaline, broadly ellipsoid or subglobose to
  almost globose, coarsely ornamented with prominent warts which stain
  blue-black when mounted in solutions containing iodine and which are
  faintly interconnected by low ridges, about 8 × 7 µm in size (9-10 ×
  7-8 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: prominent, lance- to spindle-shaped and often
  filled with oily material.

  Facial cystidia: similar in shape to marginal cystidia and projecting
  some distance from the gill-face.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Commonly found in mixed woods from summer
  until late autumn.

  _General Information_: Easily recognised by the ochre-yellow cap, very
  pale cream-coloured spore-print and greying stem. Two other
  yellow-capped species of Russula are commonly found. R. claroflava
  Grove with yellow spore-print and blackening fruit-body which grows
  with birches in boggy places, and R. lutea (Fries) S. F. Gray which is
  much smaller, having a cap up to 50 mm and very deep egg-yellow gills
  and spore-print; it grows in deciduous woods.

  _Illustrations_: F 22a; Hvass 226; LH 119; NB 137¹; WD 49¹.


General notes on the genus _Russula_

A large genus with nearly one hundred distinct species in the British
Isles and several others yet unrecognised or undocumented. This genus is
composed generally of large toadstools often beautifully coloured,
indeed the majority have brightly coloured caps in reds, purples,
yellows or greens depending on the species although a few are
predominantly white bruising reddish brown or grey to some degree.

Such large and distinctive fungi one would think would be the easiest
members of our flora to identify, unfortunately they are not. They form
a group quite isolated in their relations, the only close relatives
being members of the genus _Lactarius_, to be dealt with later (see p.
50). The flesh of members of both _Lactarius_ and _Russula_ contains
groups of rounded cells, a feature unique amongst agarics and explains
why in _Russula_ the fruit-bodies, cap and gills and sometimes the stem
are brittle and easily break if crushed between the fingers. The
fruit-body does not exude a milky liquid when the flesh is broken.

The spore-print varies, depending on the species involved, from white to
deep ochre and individual spores are covered in a coarse ornamentation
which is composed of isolated warts or warts interconnected by raised
lines, or mixtures of both. The ornamentation stains deep blue-black
when the spores are mounted in solutions containing iodine and the
pattern which is produced appears in many cases to be of a specific
character.

The majority of the species, if not all north-temperate species are
mycorrhizal and the familiar host-tree fungus relationship can be
recognised:--

  _R. claroflava_ Grove, with birch in boggy places, _R. emetica_
  (Fries) S. F. Gray with pine in wet places, _R. betularum_ Hora with
  birch in grassy copses and _R. sardonia_ Fries with pines. Brief notes
  are here included giving the basic characters of eight common species,
  but it must be appreciated the identification of many species within
  this genus is difficult.


~R. atropurpurea~ (Krombholz) Britz.

  Blackish purple russula

  _Cap_: width 50-100 mm. _Stem_: width 14-25 mm; length 60-80 mm.

  Cap: deep reddish purple but becoming spotted with either cream-colour
  or white blotches.

  Stem: white but becoming flushed greyish or stained brownish with age.

  Gills: white then very pale yellow.

  Flesh: white in cap and stem.

  Spore-print: white.

  On the ground in mixed woods and copses, particularly those containing
  oak.

[Illustration: Plate 7. Fleshy but brittle fungi: Spores whitish and
borne on gills]


~Russula cyanoxantha~ (Secretan) Fries

  _Cap_: width 50-150 mm. _Stem_: width 10-30 mm; length 50-100 mm.

  Cap: lilac, bluish to purple often with green tints.

  Stem: pure white.

  Gills: pure white.

  Flesh: white.

  Spore-print: white.

  Common in deciduous woods, especially beech-woods.


~R. emetica~ (Fries) S. F. Gray

  Emetic russula

  _Cap_: width 50-100 mm. _Stem_: width 8-15 mm; length 25-70 mm.

  Cap: bright scarlet fading with age to become spotted pinkish,
  slightly viscid when moist.

  Stem: spongy, fragile.

  Flesh: white.

  Gills: pure white.

  Spore-print: pure white.

  In pine woods usually in boggy areas.


~R. fellea~ (Fries) Fries

  Geranium-scented russula

  _Cap_: width 40-75 mm. _Stem_: width 10-20 mm; length 30-75 mm.

  Cap: tacky when fresh, straw-coloured or pale tawny brown.

  Stem: similarly coloured to the cap.

  Gills and flesh: pale straw-colour and smelling of House Geraniums
  (i.e. Pelargoniums).

  Spore-print: cream-coloured.

  Common under beech.


~R. foetens~ (Fries) Fries

  Foetid russula

  _Cap_: width 70-170 mm. _Stem_: width 15-30 mm; length 50-90 mm.

  Cap: slimy, dingy yellow to tawny, margin strongly furrowed and
  ornamented with raised bumps.

  Stem: whitish then flushed or spotted with rust-brown.

  Gills: straw-coloured, often spotted brown with age and beaded with
  watery droplets when growing under moist conditions.

  Flesh: white to cream, brittle and with foetid-oily smell.

  Spore-print: pale cream-colour.

  Common in deciduous woods.


~R. mairei~ Singer

  _Cap_: width 30-75 mm. _Stem_: width 7-15 mm; length 35-70 mm.

  Cap: scarlet red but developing creamy areas with age, dry.

  Stem and gills: white but with a distinct although faint greenish grey
  flush, the former fairly firm.

  Flesh: white.

  Spore-print: pure white.

  Commonly accompanying beech, even individual trees in gardens.


~R. nigricans~ (Mérat) Fries

  Blackening russula

  _Cap_: width 75-200 mm. _Stem_: width 15-35 mm; length 25-75 mm.

  Cap: cream-coloured then flushed sooty brown, finally black as if
  scorched by proximity to bonfire.

  Stem: white then dark brown.

  Gills: pale ochre reddening when bruised, thick and very distant.

  Flesh: white slowly dull red on cutting then brown and finally
  changing soot-colour after some time.

  Spore-print: white.

  Common in deciduous woods.


~R. xerampelina~ (Secretan) Fries

  _Cap_: width 50-140 mm. _Stem_: width 15-30 mm; length 40-60 mm.

  Cap: deep blood-red or brownish red.

  Stem: white with a flush of red towards the base.

  Gills: cream then ochraceous.

  Flesh: white staining brownish and smelling strongly of fish- or
  crab-paste, and staining dark green when a crystal of green iron
  sulphate is rubbed into it.

  Spore-print: deep cream-colour.

  Common in mixed woods; a very variable fungus with many colour-forms,
  but easily recognised by the green reaction with ferrous sulphate.


~Lactarius turpis~ (Weinm.) Fries

  Ugly milk-cap

  _Cap_: width 60-200 mm. _Stem_: width 10-25 mm; length 40-75 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: firm, convex usually with a central depression at maturity, dark
  olive-brown or dark greyish olive with a yellow-tawny, woolly margin
  when young which soon disappears, and the whole cap becomes sticky
  with age and turns deep purple when a drop of household ammonia is
  placed on it.

  Stem: short, stout, similarly coloured to the cap except for the
  distinctly ochraceous apex, slimy and pitted.

  Gills: crowded, cream-coloured to pale straw-coloured, but soon
  spotted with dirty brown, particularly when bruised.

  Flesh: white or greyish ochre exuding a milk-like liquid which lacks a
  distinct smell and is white and unchanging when exposed to the air.

  Spore-print: pale pinkish buff.

  Spores: subglobose or ellipsoid and covered in a network of strongly
  developed, raised lines interconnected by finer ones, both of which
  stain blue-black in solutions containing iodine, generally 8 × 6 µm in
  size (7-8 × 6-7 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: lance- or spindle-shaped and filled with oily
  contents.

  Facial cystidia: similar to marginal cystidia.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common in woods and copses, or on heaths
  especially in boggy places but always where birch is growing.

  _General Information_: Easily recognised by the dull colours and
  purple reaction with alkali; there is no British species with which
  _L. turpis_ can be mistaken. The purple reaction is similar to that
  found in the familiar school laboratory reagent litmus, for the
  compound found in _L. turpis_ turns purple in alkali and reddens in
  acidic solutions. First discovered by Harley in 1893 this reaction
  marked the beginning of a whole series of chemical studies on the
  agarics which has led to the discovery of many unique compounds.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 214 (but too green); LH 213; NB 113³; WD 38¹.


General notes on the genus _Lactarius_

There is little doubt that the genus _Russula_ and the genus _Lactarius_
are closely related; in fact they stand aside from the other agarics
in the very important character mentioned on page 46. In Europe the
easiest distinction between the two genera is that members of the genus
_Lactarius_ exude a milk-like juice which may be white or variously
coloured depending on the species involved (e.g. purple in _L. uvidus_
(Fries) Fries, yellow in _L. chrysorheus_ Fries). The cap, stem and
frequently the gills are brittle and when broken liberate the milk-like
liquid; when the fruit-body is dry, however, the presence of this liquid
may be difficult to demonstrate. The spores have a blue-black
ornamentation under the microscope when mounted in iodine, and although
when in mass the colours are not as varied as those found in the genus
_Russula_ there is every likelihood that they will play an important
role in the classification of the group in the future. The colour of the
spore-print has been rather neglected, although the genus includes some
rather unusual fungi.

[Illustration: Plate 8. Fleshy and milking fungi: Spores whitish and
borne on gills]

The odours of many species are very distinct and vary from the smell of
coconut and spice to those of various flowers; an odour commonly met
with is termed ‘oily rancid resembling butter which has become mouldy’;
in early books it was described as being the smell of bed-bugs!

The majority of the species are undoubtedly mycorrhizal: thus _L.
torminosus_ is found with birch, _L. deliciosus_ and _L. rufus_ with
conifers and _L. quietus_ with oak. Brief notes are given on additional
species:--


~L. camphoratus~ (Fries) Fries

  Curry-centred milk-cap

  _Cap_: width 20-50 mm. _Stem_: length 20-50 mm; width 4-6 mm.

  Cap and stem: red-brown.

  Gills: reddish brown.

  Flesh: reddish buff with an aromatic odour resembling spices which
  becomes very strong when dried and exudes a pale thin milk-like
  liquid.

  Common in conifer woods and plantations.


~L. deliciosus~ (Fries) S. F. Gray

  Saffron milk-cap

  _Cap_: width 50-120 mm. _Stem_: length 20-60 mm; width 15-25 mm.

  Cap: viscid, dirty greyish ochre with flush of tawny but soon becoming
  greenish with age.

  Stem: dirty buff or greyish ochre, spotted with green particularly
  with age or on handling.

  Gills: orange-yellow bruising deep orange but becoming green with
  time.

  Flesh: pinkish to apricot-coloured but becoming green with age and
  exuding a rich orange-red fluid which gradually becomes greyish green.

  Frequent in conifer woods and plantations.


~L. glyciosmus~ (Fries) Fries

  Coconut-scented milk-cap

  _Cap_: width 20-50 mm. _Stem_: length 30-50 mm; width 5-8 mm.

  Cap: usually with a central ‘bump’, greyish lilac, dull and minutely
  scaly or velvety.

  Stem: white to pale yellowish.

  Gills: pale yellowish to flesh-coloured then flushed lilaceous.

  Flesh: pale yellowish or flushed lilaceous, smelling strongly of
  desiccated coconut and exuding a white unchanging milk-like liquid.

  In woods and on heaths, particularly where birch is growing.


~L. quietus~ (Fries) Fries

  Oak milk-cap

  _Cap_: width 30-80 mm. _Stem_: length 40-80 mm; width 10-15 mm.

  Cap and stem: milky cocoa-coloured, zoned with reddish brown.

  Gills: pale ochraceous then flushed red-brown.

  Flesh: similar to gills, smelling strongly of rancid oil, and exuding
  a white, thin milk-like liquid which becomes very, very faintly yellow
  on exposure to the air.

  Common wherever oak is growing.


~L. rufus~ (Fries) Fries

  Rufous milk-cap

  _Cap_: width 50-90 mm. _Stem_: length 50-90 mm; width 10-15 mm.

  Cap: dark red-brown with a distinct, usually sharp ‘bump’ in centre.

  Stem: pale red-brown throughout or whitish at base.

  Gills: pale reddish brown and exuding a white, unchanging milk-like
  fluid.

  In pine woods and less frequently with birches on acid heaths.


~L. torminosus~ (Fries) S. F. Gray

  Woolly milk-cap

  _Cap_: width 40-150 mm. _Stem_: length 60-100 mm; width 15-30 mm.

  Cap: pale strawberry-pink or pale salmon colour, distinctly zoned,
  slimy when wet at centre and strongly shaggy fibrillose at margin.

  Stem and gills: pale strawberry colour.

  Flesh: tinged salmon-pink and exuding a white unchangeable milk-like
  liquid.

  Frequent where birches grow.


~Amanita muscaria~ (Fries) Hooker

  Fly agaric

  _Cap_: width 100-175 mm. _Stem_: width 30-40 mm; length 150-275 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: bright scarlet to orange-red with scattered whitish or yellowish
  fragments of veil particularly towards the centre and hanging down
  from the margin, viscid when moist, striate at margin with age.

  Stem: white, striate above the soft easily torn, although prominent,
  ring which is white above and yellow below; stem-base swollen and
  ornamented with patches of yellowish or white veil-fragments which
  form concentric rings or ridges of tissue.

  Gills: white, free, crowded, fairly thick, minutely toothed at their
  edge.

  Flesh: soft, lacking distinctive smell, or at times slightly earthy
  and white, yellowish below cap-centre.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: long, hyaline under the microscope, ellipsoid, smooth about 10
  × 7 µm in size (10-13 × 7-8 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: composed of chains of swollen, hyaline cells.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Found in birch-woods, less frequently
  collected in the vicinity of conifers; wide-spread and fairly common,
  but it is erratic in its appearance giving the impression of being
  absent from a locality until one season it suddenly fruits in
  profusion.

  _General Information_: An easily recognised fungus because of its
  striking colour. It is also very familiar and well-known because it
  appears so often on Christmas cards, and features commonly in
  illustrations in children’s story-books. The fungus contains a poison
  which formerly was used to kill flies--hence the common name of ‘Fly
  agaric’ and the scientific name from the latin name for the house-fly.
  The red skin of the cap, where the major amount of the poison resides,
  was cut up with a little milk and sugar or honey; flies attracted to
  this sweet concoction inadvertently ate the poison and later perished.
  This fungus has a very well documented and long history and appears in
  the legends of many countries. It is featured in Greek mythology,
  Slavic and Scandinavian folk-lore and indeed appears in the
  pre-history of Indian tribes of N.E. Asia. It has even been connected
  with the formation of certain sects within the early Christian church.

  _Illustrations_: F. frontispiece; Hvass 1; LH 117; NB 113¹; WD 2¹.

[Illustration: Plate 9. Fleshy fungi: Spores white and borne on gills]


Notes on the genus _Amanita_

The genus _Amanita_ contains many important mycorrhizal fungi including
the ‘Blusher’, _A. rubescens_ (Fries) S. F. Gray, the ‘Tawny grisette’,
_A. fulva_ Secretan, and the ‘False death-cap’, _A. citrina_ S. F. Gray.
The first grows on heaths and in woods with a variety of trees; _A.
fulva_ frequently grows with birch and _A. citrina_ with several leafy
trees although its var. _alba_ (Gillet) E. J. Gilbert appears to be
confined to beech woods. However, there is some evidence that many
members of the genus in drier more southern countries than Britain, are
non-mycorrhizal. In fact the genus as a whole may be southern-temperate
in its distribution. In the British Isles the number of species of
_Amanita_ recorded decreases as one goes north, or the frequency of
single species except for a few widespread forms falls off northwards.
In a few cases a more familiar southern species is replaced in similar
habitats by another species, e.g. _A. phalloides_ (Fries) Secretan is
replaced by _A. virosa_ Secretan the ‘Destroying angel’ in Scotland, and
_A. citrina_ frequently in the north by _A. porphyria_ (Fries) Secretan.
Species of _Amanita_ are usually large conspicuous fungi and the genus
contains some of our best known agarics. One, _A. muscaria_ (Fries)
Hooker has already been mentioned, but the genus also includes the
‘Death-cap’ _A. phalloides_ and ‘Caesar’s mushroom’ _A. caesarea_
(Fries) Schweinitz, a fungus not found in this country but considered to
be superior in edibility to all other fungi; thus edible and deadly
poisonous species are found closely related and this simply emphasises
how important it is not to eat the agarics one finds in the woods and
fields except when accompanied by a ‘real’ expert. Deaths or near
fatalities in Europe and North America are recorded annually due to the
eating of fungi belonging to this genus.

The poisonous qualities of the fungi in this genus--only a very small
amount of poison is often sufficient to produce fatal results--has led
to a close connection between these fungi and black magic and the
supernatural. This connection is even more emphasised when it is learnt
that some have an intoxicating effect. Hence the long history mentioned
earlier.

Members of the genus _Amanita_ are characterised by their anatomy and
certain macroscopic features; the former is illustrated under _A.
muscaria_, i.e. the divergent gill-trama. The main macroscopic character
of note is the presence of a volva at the base of the stem and it is
the details of this volva which helps to distinguish different species.
_A. phalloides_ has a distinct, loose, membranous sheath, in _A.
citrina_ the volva is reduced to a narrow rim around the bulbous stem
and in _A. rubescens_ and _A. muscaria_ the volva is simply a series of
concentric zones of woolly scales. All the four species noted above
possess a ring, but _A. fulva_ the ‘Tawny grisette’ and _A. vaginata_
(Fries) Vittadini the ‘Grisette’ only possess a volva; this has lead to
the use of the generic name _Amanitopsis_ in many books, now no longer
considered necessary.

The veil in _Amanita_ is probably the most highly developed amongst our
common agarics and from Appendix iv it can be seen how the scaly cap and
stem originate and how the volva differs from the ring. The volva and
cap-scales constitute what has been called the universal veil and the
ring which stretches from the cap margin to the stem has been termed the
partial veil.

The spores of species of _Amanita_ are large and their shape and
chemical reactions help to distinguish the different species within the
genus. One of the most interesting features, however, is that the
spore-mass, although usually described as white, in many species is not
white but flushed greenish grey, etc. The slight subtleties in colour of
the spore-print assist in classification.

The following notes may be instructive in conjunction with the
information above (for common names see above).


(i) Possessing a ring on the stem:--


~A. citrina~ S. F. Gray

  _Cap_: width 55-80 mm. _Stem_: width 18-22 mm; length 70-80 mm.

  A lemon-yellow or whitish capped agaric with bulbous stem-base, white
  patches of volva on cap and white stem with flesh strongly smelling of
  new potatoes.

  Spores: almost globose and measuring 9-10 × 7-8 µm.


~A. excelsa~ (Fries) Kummer

  _Cap_: width 75-140 mm. _Stem_: width 20-28 mm; length 85-120 mm.

  A greyish or brownish capped agaric with clavate stem-base, grey
  patches of volva on the cap and white concentrically scaly stem with
  flesh unchanged on exposure to the air.

  Spores: broadly ellipsoid and measuring 9-10 × 8-9 µm.


~A. rubescens~ (Fries) S. F. Gray

  _Cap_: width 70-120 mm. _Stem_: width 12-25 mm; length 65-100 mm.

  A reddish fawn or pinkish buff capped agaric with swollen stem-base,
  pinkish or flesh-coloured patches of volva on cap and reddish
  concentrically scaly stem with flesh becoming reddish when exposed to
  the air.

  Spores: ellipsoid and measuring 9-10 × 5-6 µm.


~A. pantherina~ (Fries) Secretan

  ‘Panther’

  _Cap_: width 48-95 mm. _Stem_: width 12-20 mm; length 65-100 mm.

  An olive-brown or smoky brown capped agaric with only slightly swollen
  stem-base, white patches of volva on the cap and white concentrically
  scaly stem with unchanging flesh.

  Spores: ellipsoid and measuring 8-12 × 7 µm.


~A. phalloides~ (Fries) Secretan

  _Cap_: width 70-85 mm. _Stem_: width 12-20 mm; length 85-120 mm.

  A greenish or yellow-olive capped agaric with stem sheathed in
  membranous volva, white patches of volva on cap and smooth, white stem
  with white flesh.

  Spores: broadly ellipsoid and measuring 10-12 × 7 µm.


(ii) Lacking ring on stem:--


~A. fulva~ Secretan

  _Cap_: width 40-60 mm. _Stem_: width 10-15 mm; length 100-150 mm.

  A thin, tawny-brown agaric with stem sheathed in membranous volva and
  pale tawny, slightly scaly stem.

  Spores: globose and 10-12 µm in diameter.


~A. vaginata~ (Fries) Vittadini

  Differs from _A. fulva_ in the cap being metallic grey or silvery in
  colour.


(b) Parasites


~Armillaria mellea~ (Fries) Kummer

  Honey-fungus

  _Cap_: width 50-150 mm. _Stem_: width 10-12 mm; length 75-150 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 10.

  Cap: at first convex then more or less flattened or slightly
  depressed, very variable in colour, yellowish, olive, buff,
  sand-coloured or some shade of brown, at first covered in small,
  brownish or ochraceous scales which give the young cap a velvety
  aspect, but gradually the scales disappear with age except at the
  cap-centre; margin striate and usually paler than centre of the cap.

  Stem: equal or swollen at base, often several grouped together, white
  at apex above a whitish, rather thick, ring which is flushed with
  olive-yellow or red-brown at its margin; stem-base fibrillose, whitish
  but finally red-brown at maturity.

  Gills: adnate or slightly decurrent, whitish then flushed flesh colour
  and developing brownish spots with age or in cold, wet weather.

  Flesh: with rather strong and unpleasant smell, white or flushed
  pinkish in the cap, brown and stringy in the stem.

  Spore-print: very pale cream colour.

  Spores: medium-sized, hyaline, ellipsoid, less than 10 µm in length
  (8-9 × 5-6 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: variable, hyaline, cylindric and not
  well-differentiated.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This fungus grows in troops or is found
  joined at the base to form clusters. It is always attached to old
  trees, trunks, stumps and buried wood, either directly or by its
  vegetative stage which darkens and aggregates to form strands
  resembling boot-laces which are called rhizomorphs.

  _General Information_: This rather variable, and therefore often
  perplexing, fungus causes a destructive rot of trees and can travel
  long distances through the soil with the use of its rhizomorphs. It
  commonly grows on several species of broad-leaved trees, but can also
  colonise conifer trees. It also attacks garden shrubs, such as
  privet-hedges, and is particularly destructive to Rhododendrons
  causing a wilt of the whole shrub and subsequent death; it has also
  been recorded as attacking potatoes. The actively growing mycelium
  which can often be found growing under the bark of infected trees,
  exhibits a luminosity if freshly exposed and placed in a darkened
  room. The rhizomorphs of _A. mellea_ are highly specialised structures
  composed of mycelial threads some of which have become rather more
  differentiated than is normally found in the vegetative stage of other
  agarics.

  _Illustrations_: F 27a; Hvass 26; LH 93; NB 141¹; WD 4³.


~Pholiota squarrosa~ (Fries) Kummer

  Shaggy Pholiota

  _Cap_: width 50-120 mm. _Stem_: width 17-25 mm; length 95-125 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 11.

  Cap: convex, but expanding and becoming flattened with a slight
  central umbo, ochre-yellow to yellowish rust-colour and covered with
  dark brown recurved scales which are particularly dense at the centre.

  Stem: variable in length and thickness depending on how it is attached
  to the substrate, whether in a deep crack or wound, or in a
  depression, and how many specimens are in the cluster; its colour is
  similar to that of the cap, exhibits a small, dark brown fibrillose,
  torn ring or ring-zone and is ornamented with recurved red-brown
  scales below that ring.

  Gills: broadly adnate with a decurrent tooth and crowded, yellowish at
  first then rust-coloured.

  Flesh: with strong, pleasant but pungent smell, yellowish brown, soft
  in the cap, fibrous in the stem.

  Spore-print: rich rust-brown.

  Spores: medium-sized, pale brown under the microscope, smooth,
  ellipsoid, and 6-8 × 4 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: spindle-shaped, hyaline, numerous.

  Facial cystidia: flask-shaped with a small apical appendage and
  becoming rich yellow when immersed in solutions containing ammonia.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common in clusters in woods, gardens or
  parks, on wood or at the base of the trunks of broad-leaved trees in
  summer and autumn.

[Illustration: Plate 10. Fleshy fungi: Spores white and borne on gills]

  _General Information_: Although rather a common easily recognisable
  and aesthetically pleasing fungus growing in its characteristic
  clusters at the base of trees, it is a weak parasite entering the
  living tissue after invading decayed areas of the tree. This is the
  reason why when branches are broken off trees by wind, snow or storms,
  they should be carefully trimmed to remove ragged edges and the wound
  treated with a protective tar to stop the entry of rain, cold and
  fungus spores. Other more destructive fungi may enter a tree through
  such wounds; _P. squarrosa_ frequently attacks mountain ash or rowan.

  It is recognised by the dry scaly cap and stem which helps to
  distinguish it from the sticky capped _P. aurivella_ (Fries) Kummer
  with similar habitat preferences but wider spores (6-9 × 4-5 µm). _P.
  adiposa_ (Fries) Kummer is found on beech trees and it, too, has a
  viscid cap, but the spores are 5-6 × 3-4 µm in dimensions.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 134; LH 149; WD 54².

[Illustration: Plate 11. Fleshy fungi: Spores rust-brown and borne on
gills]


(c) Saprophytes--wood inhabiting or lignicolous agarics


~Hypholoma fasciculare~ (Fries) Kummer

  Sulphur-tuft

  _Cap_: width 20-50 mm. _Stem_: width 6-13 mm; length 40-100 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: sulphur-yellow, flushed with sand-colour or red-brown at centre
  then ochraceous yellow throughout, convex at first with margin
  incurved and clothed with fibrillose remnants of a yellow-olive veil,
  but then becoming flattened and losing evidence of that veil.

  Stem: equal or flexuous, usually with several joined at base,
  similarly coloured to the cap, fibrillose streaky or with some fibrils
  from the veil stretching from the cap to the stem in young specimens.

  Gills: sinuate and crowded, at first sulphur-yellow then olive-green,
  but finally with a flush of purple-brown.

  Flesh: with rather strong and unpleasant smell, yellow throughout.

  Spore-print: purple-brown.

  Spores: medium-sized, ellipsoid or ovoid, smooth, purple-brown and
  less than 10 µm in length (6-8 × 4 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: flasked-shaped, short, cylindric and hyaline.

  Facial cystidia: more swollen than marginal cystidia and with silvery
  contents which yellow in solutions containing ammonia.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: The sulphur-tuft grows in dense clusters
  on and around old stumps of broad-leaved trees, and can be found
  throughout the year; it also grows on conifers, but less frequently.

  _General Information_: It may be recognised by the greenish tint of
  the immature gills and of the young cap. _H. capnoides_ (Fries) Kummer
  grows on the wood of coniferous trees and has a much more ochraceous
  brown cap and stem than the sulphur-tuft and slightly larger
  spores--7-8 × 4-5 µm. _H. sublateritium_ (Fries) Quélet grows on
  hardwoods but is bigger than _H. fasciculare_ and has a brick-coloured
  cap and very sturdy stem (spores 6-7 × 3-4 µm).

  _Illustrations_: F 37b; Hvass 176; LH 147; NB 141⁵; WD 76².

[Illustration: Plate 12. Fleshy fungi: Spores purplish brown and borne
on gills]


~Flammulina velutipes~ (Fries) Karsten

  Velvet-shank

  _Cap_: width 20-80 mm. _Stem_: width 5-10 mm; length 35-60 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: bright sand-colour or slightly red-brown at centre, convex at
  first then flattened with age, smooth, slimy because of the presence
  of a sticky elastic skin, rather rubbery to the touch.

  Stem: cylindrical or slightly swollen towards the base, dark brown and
  densely hairy or velvety, tough and rubbery to handle.

  Gills: adnexed, very unequal and somewhat distant, pale yellow,
  gradually becoming buff as the spores mature.

  Flesh: with rather pleasant smell, yellowish, watery and soft.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium-sized, hyaline, ellipsoid and about 8 × 3-4 µm in Size
  (7-9 × 3-4 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: hyaline, elongate, broadly flask-shaped.

  Facial cystidia: similar to marginal cystidia.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Found in clusters on old stumps, fallen
  trunks and on the wounded parts of standing trees.

  _General Information_: This fungus can be recognised by the clustered
  habit, the viscid, bright tawny cap and the dark velvety stem. This is
  one of the few agarics which occurs regularly late in the season, even
  appearing in the winter, although it can be seen growing in its
  familiar groups at almost any time of the year. This fungus holds a
  rather isolated position in classification and was once placed in the
  genus _Collybia_. It may be found in several books under this last
  genus.

  _Illustrations_: F 18b; Hvass 80; LH 109; NB 141³; WD 21⁴.

[Illustration: Plate 13. Fleshy fungi: Spores white and borne on gills]


~Mycena galericulata~ (Fries) S. F. Gray

  Bonnet mycena

  _Cap_: width 25-50 mm. _Stem_: width 3-6 mm; length 50-125 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: conical or bell-shaped then expanding but retaining a central
  umbo, never completely flattened, smooth, greyish, pale sepia or dirty
  white and striate with darker lines from the margin to the centre.

  Stem: similarly coloured to the cap, smooth, shiny, tough and usually
  noticeably downy at base.

  Gills: at first white flushed distinctly pale pink with age, uncinate,
  rather distant and sometimes with interconnecting veins.

  Flesh: white with little or no distinctive smell.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium-sized, hyaline, broadly ellipsoid, smooth, about 10 × 7
  µm in size (9-12 × 6-8 µm) and staining bluish grey when mounted in
  solutions containing iodine.

  Marginal cystidia: club-shaped but the apex ornamented with blunt
  hairs of varying lengths.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Commonly found, in all but the coldest
  months, in woods, parks or gardens, often in dense clusters on stumps
  and fallen trunks of broad-leaved trees.

  _General Information_: This is one of our commonest members, and one
  of the largest in the genus _Mycena_; many species in this genus are
  quite small yet are nevertheless very important components of the
  woodland flora decomposing leaves, twigs, etc., and contributing in
  this way to the recirculating of organic matter.

  The name _Mycena_ is derived from the same Greek word as that which
  refers to the country around the ancient city of Mycenae in the plain
  of Argos, and from whence Agamemnon came and gathered his forces to
  invade Troy to reclaim Helen his wife. It has been suggested that this
  similarity in name came about through the necessity for an army
  stationed in Argos, early in the history of Ancient Greece, to rely on
  the mushrooms found on the plains about to save the soldiers from
  starvation.

  _Illustrations_: F 17a; Hvass 119; LH 109; NB 133⁸; WD 26³.

[Illustration: Plate 14. Fleshy fungi: Spores white and borne on gills]


~Pluteus cervinus~ (Fries) Kummer

  Fawn pluteus

  _Cap_: width 40-100 mm. _Stem_: width 10-15 mm; length 75-125 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: conical, rapidly expanding and then becoming plano-convex or
  flattened with only a slight but persistent umbo, dark brown, umber or
  vandyke brown, viscid when wet and often with radiating fibrils.

  Stem: white, streaked to varying degrees with dark brown fibrils,
  cylindrical or slightly swollen towards the base, where it is attached
  to the substrate.

  Gills: remote, very crowded, thin, at first white then distinctly
  salmon-pink.

  Flesh: with pleasant smell, white and soft.

  Spore-print: dull salmon-pink.

  Spores: medium-sized, very faintly buff under the microscope, broadly
  ellipsoid and 7-8 × 5-6 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: flask-shaped, the majority with three or four hooks
  at the distinctively thick-walled apex.

  Facial cystidia: similar to marginal cystidia but sometimes intermixed
  with those lacking hooks.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This fungus grows singly or in groups on
  old stumps and fallen trunks throughout the year except for the most
  wintry months; it is commonest in autumn.

  _General Information_: This fungus may also grow on old sawdust heaps,
  a habitat which is often very worth while examining in detail by the
  interested amateur during wet seasons. In summer sawdust heaps dry out
  but after a good soaking, which, of course, can be applied
  artificially by frequent watering with a hose or watering-can, many
  interesting fungi develop. On sawdust heaps containing conifer debris
  a larger species with black or dark brown edge to the gills is
  found--_P. atromarginatus_ Kühner.

  The peculiar pointed cystidia found on the gill-edge and on the
  gill-face of _P. cervinus_ were thought by some early mycologists to
  stop mites and insect larvae from crawling up between the gills and
  damaging the developing spores. There is no evidence that this
  actually takes place in nature; the real purpose of these obscure
  structures is unknown and has been little studied.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 127; LH 121; NB 135¹; WD 50².

[Illustration: Plate 15. Fleshy fungi: Spores pinkish and borne on
gills]


~Gymnopilus penetrans~ (Fries) Murrill

  _Cap_: width 20-50 mm. _Stem_: width 4-7 mm; length 20-50 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: convex then becoming flattened at maturity, dry, slightly scaly,
  golden tawny, or rusty yellow and when young with the remnants of a
  rapidly disappearing yellow cortina hanging from the margin.

  Stem: yellow above and red-brown or orange-tawny below and darkening
  on bruising; veil forming a delicate fibrillose zone in the upper part
  of the stem which is soon lost on excessive handling.

  Gills: adnate to slightly decurrent, thin and crowded, at first golden
  yellow, but soon spotted rust colour.

  Flesh: yellow and lacking distinctive smell.

  Spore-print: rich orange-tawny.

  Spores: medium-sized, ellipsoid, finely roughened and deep yellow
  brown under the microscope, less than 10 µm in length (7-8 × 5-4 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: hyaline, flask-shaped with long often slightly
  irregular neck.

  Facial cystidia: similar to the marginal cystidia, but often broader.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This fungus is found on sticks or twigs or
  chips of coniferous wood, particularly in plantations.

  _General Information_: Although it has only comparatively recently
  been recognised in Britain it is very wide-spread. It has been
  confused with, indeed described under, the name of the less-common
  fungus _Gymnopilus sapineus_ (Fries) Maire which also grows in conifer
  woods; it is easily distinguished, however, by its spotted gills. Both
  the fungi above can be found in books under the old name _Flammula_,
  from the bright colour of the caps of many of its constituent members,
  but _Flammula_ has been used for a genus of flowering plants also and
  this has precedence.

  _Illustrations_: F 29a; Hvass 152 not very good; LH 175 not very good;
  NB 109⁶.

[Illustration: Plate 16. Fleshy fungi: Spores rust-brown and borne on
gills]


Notes on the artificial family group ‘_Pleurotaceae_’--the Oyster
mushrooms

One of the common features of lignicolous fungi is the fact that they
lack a distinct stem or if one is present it is attached to one side of
the cap, i.e. lateral. However, in the past the correlation of the
habitat with lack of stem has induced mycologists to define a single
family to include all these forms. After studying the anatomy and
microscopic characters this grouping has been found to be entirely
artificial and simply reflects how the morphology is tied up intimately
with the ecology of a species.

In this one family members of the genera _Panus_, _Panellus_,
_Lentinus_, _Lentinellus_, _Crepidotus_, _Pleurotellus_, and _Pleurotus_
have all been grouped together, but some of the genera are more related
to the polypores referred to later (p. 135); many of those with brown
spores are better placed with _Cortinarius_ and some of those with white
or cream-coloured spores are better placed close to _Mycena_ and
_Tricholoma_. This leaves as a residue the genus _Pleurotus_, a genus
which although rather heterogeneous contains one familiar member, i.e.
the common Oyster mushroom, _Pleurotus ostreatus_.


~Pleurotus ostreatus~ (Fries) Kummer

  Oyster mushroom

  Grows up to 150 mm across.

  Cap: flattened, shell-shaped, smooth or slightly cracked, deep bluish
  grey, gradually becoming brownish with age and finally dark buff.

  Stem: absent or very short, passing gradually into one side of the
  cap.

  Gills: white flushing dirty yellow with age, rather distant and deeply
  decurrent.

  Flesh: white, soft and with very pleasant smell.

  Spore-print: pale lilac.

  Spores: long, hyaline, oblong under the microscope and 10-11 × 4 µm in
  size.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common, clustered in tiers on stumps,
  trunks, posts, etc.

  _General Information_: This fungus is not infrequent on old
  telephone-poles and forms white sheets of mycelium immediately under
  the bark of fallen trees. Although frequent in autumn it may be found
  throughout the year and is easily recognised by its size and
  bracket-like, shell-shaped caps. It surprisingly has a pale lilac
  spore-print and not as might be expected a white spore-print. In the
  var. _columbinus_ Quélet the young caps are a beautiful peacock-blue;
  this variety frequently grows on poplars.

  _Illustrations_: F 125²; Hvass 109; LH 107; NB 125²; WD 31¹.

[Illustration: Plate 17. Wood-inhabiting, fleshy but leathery fungi:
Spores whitish or brownish and borne on gills--‘Pleurotaceae’]


  ~Panus torulosus~ (Fries) Fries is a tough, funnel-shaped, yellowish
  cinnamon fungus with oblong-ellipsoid, small, hyaline spores measuring
  5-6 × 3 µm and changing yellowish not bluish grey in iodine solutions.


  ~Panellus stipticus~ (Fries) Karsten forms tiers of pale
  cinnamon-brown, more or less kidney-shaped, scurfy caps on old wood
  and has egg-shaped, hyaline, small spores measuring 4 × 2-3 µm which
  become bluish grey in iodine solutions.


  ~Lentinellus cochleatus~ (Fries) Karsten forms irregular lobed and
  twisted, flattened or funnel-shaped dirty brownish caps with a
  fragrant smell, toothed gill-edges and almost spherical, small,
  hyaline spores measuring 5 × 4 µm which become bluish grey in iodine
  solutions.

  _Lentinellus_ apparently has very close affinities to _Auriscalpium_,
  ‘the Ear pick fungus’, (p. 158) both in the structure of the spores
  and the anatomy of the fruit-body.


  ~Lentinus lepideus~ (Fries) Fries forms very tough fruit-bodies with
  convex or flattened, pale yellowish caps and stems ornamented with
  dark tawny or brown scales. The stem is often eccentric and buried in
  cracks or soft rotten wood on which it grows; the spores are
  non-amyloid. It grows on pine stumps but also on decaying or
  unprotected railway sleepers and wooden paving blocks, joists, etc.,
  made of conifer wood. When the fungus fruits in a darkened
  environment, such as a cellar, the mushroom-like fruit-bodies are not
  produced but are replaced by slender branched structures similar to
  the ‘Stag’s horn’ or ‘Candle-snuff fungus’ (p. 206), or to certain of
  the Fairy Club fungi (p. 172). Similar growths have been recorded for
  _Polyporus squamosus_ which grows on hard wood timber and is described
  in detail later (p. 140).


~Crepidotus mollis~ (Fries) Kummer

  Soft slipper toadstool

  Cap: up to 45 mm across and in tiers, sessile, shell-shaped or
  kidney-shaped, smooth, rubbery and brownish ochre in colour.

  Gills: pale buff then cinnamon-brown and finally flushed snuff-brown,
  thin and crowded.

  Flesh: watery, gelatinous beneath the skin of the cap and whitish
  buff.

  Spore-print: warm brown.

  Spores: ellipsoid, smooth, medium-sized, pale buff under the
  microscope and 8-9 × 5-5·5 µm in size.

  Easily recognised by the soft elastic cap which can be stretched
  without breaking, the brown gills and pale buff spores. (See Plate 49,
  p. 153.)

  _Illustrations_: LH 177; NB 145³; WD 69¹.

  The artificiality of classifying all those agarics with both a
  spoon-shaped or bracket-shaped fruit-body, and a reduced (or lacking)
  stem is further exemplified by the presence of similar genera in other
  groups of fungi. For instance _Claudopus_ is typified by pink, angular
  spores (Plate 28) and _Clitopilus_ is characterised by longitudinally
  ridged spores, i.e. they are not angular in all optical sections but
  only when seen end on (see p. 101). An example of the former is _C.
  parasiticus_ (Quélet) Ricken which grows on dead remains of woody
  fungi, and of the latter _C. passackerianus_ (Pilát) Singer which may
  invade mushroom beds. Both species are quite small though the last
  fungus is similarly coloured to the more familiar _Clitopilus
  prunulus_ (Fries) Kummer, ‘The Miller’, so common in woods and fields.

  Thus in the British Isles agarics with eccentric stems may be found,
  in the white, brown and pink-spored groups--and in the tropics and
  subtropics the picture is completed by the existence of the genus
  _Melanotus_ in the black-spored agarics. _M. bambusinus_ Pat. grows on
  bamboos and _M. musae_ (Berk. & Curt.) Singer grows on dead leaves and
  debris of bananas; the latter is also a probable agent in the decay of
  fibres in the tropics.


(d) Saprophytes--terrestrial agarics


~Melanoleuca melaleuca~ (Fries) Murrill

  _Cap_: width 40-110 mm. _Stem_: width 50-80 mm; length 50-90 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: dark brown, umber or vandyke when moist, hygrophanous and
  becoming very much paler on drying almost tan, convex then flattened
  sometimes umbonate, smooth or wrinkled.

  Stem: white or whitish covered in brownish fibrils which increase in
  number with age or after handling; solid, rather elastic and slightly
  swollen towards the base.

  Gills: white, broad, crowded and as if cut out from behind before
  joining the stem.

  Flesh: with pleasant smell, soft, white, becoming brownish with age,
  particularly in the stem.

  Spore-print: very pale ivory-colour.

  Spores: medium-sized, ellipsoid, hyaline under the microscope and
  roughened by distinct dots which become blue-black when mounted in
  solutions containing iodine, 8 × 4-5 µm.

  Marginal cystidia: spear- or sword-shaped, roughened with crystals at
  the top and appearing as if barbed like fish-spines.

  Facial cystidia: numerous and similar to marginal cystidia.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common in autumn in woods; also found in
  pastures.

  _General Information_: A very common fungus which is rather confusing
  to the beginner because of its variation in colour, brought about by
  the change in colour with change in content of water. However, this
  fungus can be easily recognised by the unusually ornamented cystidia
  found on the gill-faces and gill-margins. This character and the fact
  that the spores possess amyloid ornamentation define in part the genus
  _Melanoleuca_. In many books this common fungus is found under the
  genus _Tricholoma_; however, members of this latter genus have neither
  amyloid ornamented spores nor barbed cystidia.

  _Illustrations_: LH 103; WD 13¹.

[Illustration: Plate 18. Fleshy fungi: Spores white and borne on gills]


~Clitocybe infundibuliformis~ (Weinm.) Quélet

  Common funnel-cap

  _Cap_: width 20-60 mm. _Stem_: width 8-13 mm; length 35-75 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: yellowish ochre flushed slightly pinkish buff or cinnamon but
  later pale tan on ageing or drying, funnel shaped.

  Stem: colour like cap or slightly darker, flexible but firm and solid.

  Gills: white or faintly flushed buff, decurrent and crowded.

  Flesh: with pleasant slightly floral smell, white, soft and fairly
  thin.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium-sized, hyaline, tear-drop shaped, smooth, 6-7 × 3-4 µm
  and not blueing when mounted in solutions containing iodine.

  Marginal cystidia: little different from young basidia in dimension
  and shape, although some may have a short apical prolongation.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Woods, copses, heaths and hill-pastures
  from summer to autumn.

  _General Information_: An easily recognisable fungus because of its
  graceful stature, thin, funnel-shaped pinkish buff cap and
  tear-drop-shaped spores. Several _Clitocybe_ species grow in
  woodlands, many of them appearing later in the season when colourful
  agarics are rarer.

  The genus _Clitocybe_ is characterised by the fleshy cap with incurved
  margin when young, fibrous, fleshy stem and decurrent gills. _C.
  clavipes_ (Fries) Kummer has a smoky brown, top-shaped cap, fragile
  stem which also has a distinct swelling at its base, and strong rather
  unpleasant smell. _C. nebularis_ (Fries) Kummer is similar, but is
  pale cloudy grey, has a less fragile stem and a fairly pleasant smell.
  This species if often covered in a bloom which develops further as the
  fruit-body deteriorates. The agaric _Volvariella surrecta_ (Knapp)
  Singer is a rare parasite of _C. nebularis_ (see p. 247) and it has
  been suggested that this bloom may in fact belong to this species.
  However, I have on several occasions tried to encourage the bloom to
  reproduce by keeping hoary looking fruit-bodies of _C. nebularis_ in a
  damp-chamber, but as yet I have never been successful.

  Nevertheless, it is an exercise which would be of great interest to
  continue and a source of great excitement if the small pink-spored
  agaric were produced. _C. fragrans_ (Fries) Kummer is a small, sweetly
  aromatic-smelling species found in frondose woods, and _C. langei_
  Hora, is a mealy-smelling species of conifer plantations.

  _Illustrations_: F 16a; Hvass 55; LH 95; WD 16².

[Illustration: Plate 19. Fleshy fungi: Spores white and borne on gills]


~Hebeloma crustuliniforme~ (St Amans) Quélet

  Fairy-cake mushroom

  _Cap_: width 40-80 mm. _Stem_: width 8-12 mm; length 38-85 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: pale yellow buff or pale tan with a distinct reddish buff or
  cinnamon-brown tint, darkening only slightly with age; smooth, at
  first tacky to the fingers, but then dry and shiny at centre, convex
  and hardly expanding.

  Stem: cylindrical or slightly swollen towards the base, whitish and
  with a flush of pinkish buff at apex, and covered all over in small,
  white scales.

  Gills: sinuate, crowded, pale clay-colour or buff, but finally dull
  dark yellow ochre except for the distinct white margins which are
  beaded in wet weather with droplets of liquid.

  Flesh: whitish with a very strong smell of radishes.

  Spore-print: dark clay-colour.

  Spores: long, slightly almond-shaped, pale brown under the microscope,
  distinctly warted and about 11 × 6 µm in size (10-12 × 6-7 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: cylindrical to skittle-shaped with slightly to
  distinctly swollen apex.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common in autumn on the ground by
  pathsides and in woodland clearings.

  _General Information_: Recognisable by the uniform cinnamon or pinkish
  buff cap, white woolly scales on the stem and distinctive, strong
  smell of radish. There is some evidence that this species may on
  occasions be mycorrhizal; further field studies are required.

  There are several closely related fungi which are difficult for the
  amateur to differentiate from _H. crustuliniforme_; there is no doubt
  that there are several species present in the British Isles which do
  not appear in the Check List of British Agarics & Boleti; in fact, it
  would appear that there are several yet to be described as new to
  science. Although individual species are fairly difficult to delimit,
  the genus _Hebeloma_ itself is easily recognised, most members being
  medium sized with brown sinuate gills, whitish, yellowish, or pinkish,
  i.e. pale, caps and white-powdered stems. The word ‘crustulin’ which
  appears in the Latin name of _H. crustuliniforme_ is itself from the
  Latin and means small cake, referring to the cap-shape, which remains
  fairly constant throughout the fungus’ growth. The common name is
  derived from this also.

[Illustration: Plate 20. Fleshy fungi: Spores dull brown and borne on
gills]


~Inocybe geophylla~ (Fries) Kummer

  Common white inocybe

  _Cap_: width 10-25 mm. _Stem_: width 3-6 mm; length 30-50 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: conical with incurved margin then bell-shaped and retaining a
  distinct umbo even when mature, silvery white then ivory and finally
  pale tan particularly centrally and silky fibrillose throughout.

  Stem: slender, cylindrical but for a small swelling at the base, silky
  and shining with a few fibrils from a former cortina which may be
  brownish due to spores adhering to it at maturity.

  Gills: adnexed to free, crowded, pale ochraceous becoming
  clay-coloured.

  Flesh: white with smell of newly dug potatoes, strong when fresh.

  Spore-print: clay-colour.

  Spores: medium sized, ellipsoid or slightly French-bean-shaped,
  smooth, yellow-brown under the microscope and 9-11 × 4-5 µm in size.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: flask- to spindle-shaped with distinctly
  thickened walls and frequently ornamented with crystals apically.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common in troops in woodland clearings, by
  pathsides or on the edges of ditches bordering woods.

  _General Information_: This fungus is easily recognised by the very
  pale uniform colour, the colour of the spore-print, silky umbonate cap
  and small size. The cortina connects the cap-margin and the stem and
  consists of a cobwebby structure which collapses at maturity.

  A violet coloured variety, var. _lilacina_ Gillet is frequently found,
  in fact, even accompanying var. _geophylla_; it differs only in the
  lilac-colour of the cap and stem. _I. geophylla_ is a member of the
  very large genus _Inocybe_, further members of which will be dealt
  with later (see p. 238).

  The genus is well defined with dull-yellow spore-print, well
  differentiated sterile cells on the gill-edge (and often on the
  gill-face) and the cobweb-like veil, or cortina, stretching from the
  cap-margin to the stem and easily observed in young specimens. The
  genus is split into three distinct groups: those with smooth spores,
  those with nodulose spores and those with subglobose spores ornamented
  with long projections. _I. geophylla_ is included in the first group.
  The group which includes the nodulose-spored members has been elevated
  to the rank of genus by some authors, i.e. _Astrosporina_--a name
  referring to the spore-shape eg., _I. asterospora_.

  _Illustrations_: F 13a (too blue); LH 155; NB 139⁵; WD 65⁴.

[Illustration: Plate 21. Fleshy fungi: Spores dull brown and borne on
gills]


~Laccaria laccata~ (Fries) Cooke

  Deceiver

  _Cap_: width 12-28 mm. _Stem_: width 4-8 mm; length 15-60 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: hygrophanous, reddish brown or brick-colour becoming ochraceous
  on drying, but can be rapidly returned to the original colour by
  placing on the top a drop of water which is rapidly absorbed; fragile,
  convex at first then flattened or depressed about centre, smooth or
  surface scaley, striate at margin when moist.

  Stem: similarly coloured to the cap, fibrous, cylindrical, tough and
  usually with white woolly base.

  Gills: adnate with or without a decurrent tooth, thick, distant and
  pinkish or pale reddish-brown, powdered with white when mature.

  Flesh: red-brown, soft in the cap and fibrous in the stem.

  Spore-print: pure white.

  Spores: medium sized, hyaline under the microscope and spherical, 7-8
  µm in diameter and beautifully spiny.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common in troops in woodland, copses, on
  heaths; in fact it may be found in nearly all possible habitats.

  _General Information_: This is a very common agaric which in the
  future will probably be split into several distinct species;
  unfortunately it is as variable as it is common, hence the common name
  ‘deceiver’; it is often mistaken at first glance for many other
  species quite unrelated. I have seen even the most experienced
  mycologist pick up rather unfamiliar specimens of _Laccaria laccata_
  in mistake for a species of _Lactarius_ or a species of _Collybia_,
  etc. I would hate to say more because I have been ‘deceived’ myself on
  more than one occasion. _L. laccata_ appears to be a composite
  species, but because of the difficulty in defining some of the
  characters the splitting of the species has not as yet been
  satisfactorily solved. The smell, however, may well give a clue for
  some specimens smell very strongly of radish whilst others are
  odourless.


  ~L. proxima~ (Boudier) Patouillard, differs in having ellipsoid
  spores; it is larger in stature and is common in wet places.


  ~L. amethystea~ (Mérat) Murrill, differs in the deep violet or
  amethyst-colour of the fruit-body and commonly grows in shaded woods.


  ~L. bicolor~ (Maire) P. D. Orton, which is less frequent, has
  lilaceous gills and violaceous mycelium at the base of the stem.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 66; NB 133¹; WD 20².

[Illustration: Plate 22. Fleshy fungi: Spores white and borne on gills]


~Mycena sanguinolenta~ (Fries) Kummer

  Small bleeding mycena

  _Cap_: width 10-17 mm. _Stem_: width 2-4 mm; length 50-80 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: bell-shaped or conical expanding only slightly with age and so
  remaining umbonate, reddish-brown, striate to the margin from the
  darker apex and blotched age with red-brown spots.

  Stem: pale reddish brown, very slender, fragile, woolly at the base
  and exuding a red-brown juice when broken.

  Gills: adnate, fairly distant, whitish to flesh-colour with a dark
  red-brown edge and not noticeably becoming blotched with red-brown.

  Flesh: with no distinctive smell, reddish-brown and very thin.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium sized, hyaline, ellipsoid to pip-shaped, smooth about
  10 µm long (9-10 × 4-5 µm) and becoming bluish grey when mounted in
  solutions containing iodine.

  Marginal cystidia: awl-shaped, pointed at the apex, swollen below and
  filled with dark red-brown contents.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Solitary or in small groups on poorly kept
  lawns, in woods and copses; it is particularly frequent in the beds of
  needles found in pine woods.

  _General Information_: This fungus is easily recognised by the slender
  habit, reddish juice exuded when broken and habitat preferences.
  _Mycena haematopus_ (Fries) Kummer is larger and grows in tufts on
  wood, but also has a red-brown juice which, however, spots the gills.
  Another very common species of Mycena is _M. galopus_ (Fries) Kummer
  which has a greyish or brownish cap and exudes a milk-like juice. The
  related _M. leucogala_ (Cooke) Saccardo is almost black (see p. 216).
  These agarics exuding juice when broken have a flesh composed of
  filaments, a very different flesh-structure to species of _Lactarius_
  (see p. 50) and although their spores are amyloid they do not turn
  blue-black in iodine because of the presence of amyloid crests and
  warts. There are few additional species of agaric which exude a
  milk-like liquid, but the majority of these are tropical or
  subtropical. The second names or epithets for the four species
  mentioned above all refer to the ‘latex’--sanguinolenta--bleeding,
  _haematopus_ blood-foot; _galopus_, milk-foot and _leucogala_, white
  milk. For notes on Mycena one is referred to p. 68 describing _M.
  galericulata_ (Fries) S. F. Gray.

  _Illustrations_: WD 28⁴.

[Illustration: Plate 23. Fleshy, milking fungi: Spores white and borne
on gills]


~Collybia maculata~ (Fries) Kummer

  Spotted tough-shank

  _Cap_: width 80-130 mm. _Stem_: width 5-20 mm; length 50-158 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: white but soon becoming spotted with reddish-brown, finally
  cream-colour with red-brown blotches, convex then becoming flattened,
  fleshy, firm and tough.

  Stem: white becoming streaked red-brown, thickest in the middle,
  longitudinally furrowed or striate and often narrowed downwards into a
  long irregular root embedded in the deep litter.

  Gills: very crowded, cream-coloured, becoming spotted red-brown with
  age.

  Flesh: with pleasant smell, white and fibrous in the stem.

  Spore-print: pinkish cream-colour.

  Spores: small, almost spherical, hyaline under the microscope, about 5
  µm in diameter (4-5 × 5 µm) and not blueing when placed in solutions
  containing iodine.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common in troops in woods, particularly
  beech but also found in pine woods and on heaths.

  _General Information_: Easily recognised by the crowded, narrow, cream
  coloured gills and the cap being entirely white when young, but which
  rapidly becomes spotted red-brown as it develops. ‘Maculatus’ means
  spotted and refers to the red-brown blotches which develop irregularly
  on the cap, stem and gills as the fruit-body matures.

  The genus _Collybia_ is characterised by the fruit-body being tough,
  the cap-margin incurved at first and the spore-print white or whitish.
  The common fungus _C. maculata_ has always been assumed to have a
  white spore-print but if a cap is placed on a piece of white paper
  gills-down and left for twelve hours there is a surprise in store for
  the careful observer.

  _Illustrations_: F 15a; Hvass 77; LH 101; NB 103⁴; WD 21².

[Illustration: Plate 24. Fleshy fungi with tough stem: Spores white to
cream and borne on gills]


The specialised substrates of certain species of _Marasmius_ and related
genera

A whole series of very small fungi are found in woodland communities
which appear to be closely related one to another because their caps are
usually tough, although membranous, dry rapidly yet do not decay, and,
moreover, revive on remoistening. Their gills are also rather tough and
their spores always white in mass. They are placed in the genus
_Marasmius_. _Collybia_ or _Marasmius peronatus_ (Fries) Fries the ‘wood
woolly foot’ is one of our larger more familiar agarics related to this
group, but whereas it grows on all kinds of leafy detritus, even wood,
these small fungi appear to be very specific to the substrate on which
they grow.


~M. androsaceus~ (Fries) Fries grows both on heather and on pine-needles
(see p. 231).

Cap: whitish or pinkish buff.

Stem: black and hair-like.

Spores: pip-shaped and 7-9 × 3-4 µm.


~M. buxi~ Fries grows on box leaves.


~M. epiphylloides~ (Rea) Saccardo & Trotter grows on ivy leaves.


~M. graminum~ (Libert) Berkeley grows on grass stems.

Cap: red-brown.

Stem: dark brown.

Spores: pip-shaped, 8-12 × 4-6 µm.


~M. hudsonii~ (Fries) Fries grows on holly leaves.


~M. perforans~ (Fries) Fries grows on pine needles (now placed in the
genus _Micromphale_).


~M. undatus~ (Berkeley) Fries grows on bracken stems.

Cap: reddish brown or greyish and wrinkled.

Spores: egg-shaped, 8-9 × 6-7 µm.

Except for their rather special requirements as to substrate preference,
these species have in common small size, rather tough horny stems and
cap composed of erect ornamented cells.

Several agarics which grow on cones have also been placed in
_Marasmius_. They are frequent in spring and early summer the
fruit-bodies being attached by a very long rooting stem and cord of
fluffy hyphae to buried cones in conifers. The biology of these fungi is
still unknown, but the cones to which they are attached are always
closed yet buried often several inches beneath the surface of the
soil. It is yet to be found whether the spores of the agaric infect
the cones after they drop or whether the cones fall because they have
become infected. How do the cones become so deeply buried? Are squirrels
or rodents involved? All the species which grow on cones have brown or
tawny caps and yellowish brown stems.

[Illustration: Plate 25. Fleshy fungi with wiry to tough stem: Spores
white and borne on gills, fruit-body frequently reviving when moistened]


  ~Strobilurus stephanocystis~ (Hora) Singer has cystidia with rounded
  heads and grows on pine-cones.


  ~S. tenacellus~ (Fries) Singer has pointed cystidia and grows on
  pine-cones.


  ~S. esculentus~ (Fries) Singer has lance-shaped cystidia and grows on
  spruce cones.


  ~Baeospora myosura~ (Fries) Singer is tough and pale-coloured and is
  similar in general characters to species of _Strobilurus_, but has
  amyloid spores and fruits on pine-cones in the autumn.

When discussing the specialised plant-substrates, such as cones, one
must mention the small brown-spored, pale buff coloured agaric _Tubaria
dispersa_ (Persoon) Singer, or _Tubaria autochthona_ (Berkeley & Broome)
Saccardo, which grows on the ground under hawthorns, often in troops in
summer and autumn, attached to old hardened hawthorn berries.


(ii) Agarics of Pastures and Meadows


(a) Agarics of rough and hill pastures


~Hygrocybe pratensis~ (Fries) Donk

  Butter mushroom

  _Cap_: width 20-80 mm. _Stem_: width 5-12 mm; length 30-70 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: convex then expanding to become plano-convex with a broad low
  umbo, tan, pale russet or even yellowish buff throughout or slightly
  darker at the centre.

  Stem: gradually thickened upwards, similarly coloured to the cap or
  paler if the cap is dark russet.

  Gills: pale buff, deeply decurrent and often connected up at their
  bases by veins.

  Flesh: buff or pale tan, thick and soft in the cap, slightly fibrous
  in the stem.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium-sized, ellipsoid to egg-shaped, hyaline under the
  microscope, 7-8 × 5 µm in size and not becoming bluish grey in
  solutions containing iodine.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common in pastures or on heaths from early
  summer to late autumn.

  _General Information_: A fungus easily recognised by the uniform
  buff-colour of the stem, cap and gills. As one might expect from the
  common name it is edible; it is held in high regard by many
  mushroom-pickers.

  Although ‘pratensis’ specifically means fields, reflecting the habitat
  of the fungus, this and related species can also be found on heaths
  and pastures often intermixed and forming a most interesting flora.
  The following are perhaps the most commonly seen:

  _H. lacma_ (Fries) Orton & Watling and _H. cinerea_ (Fries) Orton &
  Watling are similar in stature, but metallic grey in colour except for
  the persistently yellow stem-base in _H. lacma_.

  _H. subradiata_ (Secretan) Orton & Watling is flesh-coloured or
  brownish and _H. virginea_ (Fries) Orton & Watling is white.

  _H. nivea_ (Fries) Orton & Watling and _H. russocoriacea_ (Berkeley &
  Miller) Orton & Watling are much smaller, the former white and
  odourless and the latter off-white with a very strong smell of
  incense.

  _Illustrations_: F 12^{b}; Hvass 95; LH 77; NB 33²; WD 33³.

[Illustration: Plate 26. Fleshy fungi: Spores white and borne on thick,
waxy gills]


~Hygrocybe psittacina~ (Fries) Wunsche

  Parrot hygrophorus

  _Cap_: width 12-25 mm. _Stem_: width 3-8 mm; length 30-60 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: very slimy with colourless sticky fluid, deep bluish green when
  fresh, but becoming more and more ochraceous-orange with age or
  completely fading out to a yellow ochre, bell-shaped at first then
  expanded except for central umbo.

  Stem: like the cap very slimy, apple-green or bluish green throughout
  but becoming ochraceous like the cap except at the apex which is
  persistently green.

  Gills: adnate yellow or apricot-coloured, greenish towards their base,
  broad, distant and rather tough.

  Flesh: whitish, tinged green in the cap and yellow or apricot-colour
  in the stem.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium-sized, hyaline, ellipsoid, not blue-grey in solutions
  containing iodine and 8-9 × 4-5 µm in size.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common in grassland and hill-pastures, but
  it also occurs in copses and woodlands.

  _General Information_: This fungus is easily recognised by the
  distinctive colours, but it is rather deceptive for the cap and the
  stem soon become faded; however, the green colouration persists at the
  apex of the stem and it is by this that in the faded state the fungus
  can still be identified. _H. laeta_ (Fries) Kummer fades to similar
  colours but the cap is flesh-colour at first or sordid brown and the
  gills are flesh-coloured or greyish; it prefers upland pastures and
  heathland: its spores are smaller, being 5-7 × 4 µm.

  _Illustrations_: F 12a; Hvass 92; LH 79; NB 33⁶; WD 34⁵.


General notes on Hygrophori

_Hygrophori_ are some of our most colourful groups of agarics, many are
brightly coloured with caps in reds, greens, yellows, oranges, etc., the
colour often accentuated by the usually slimy aspect. Traditionally the
genus _Hygrophorus_ has been split into three groups as follows:--

  _Limacium_ with slimy cap, adnate to decurrent gills and slimy or
  tacky stem which may also often be ornamented with dots, especially
  towards the top.

  _Camarophyllus_ with dry cap, smooth and fibrous stem and decurrent
  gills.

  _Hygrocybe_ with thin, fragile, sticky or moist cap, smooth fibrillose
  stem and gills varying from free to decurrent.

The last two sections have been joined together into the single genus
_Hygrocybe_ and all the members seem to be saprophytic or intimately
associated with grassland communities. The first section _Limacium_ now
makes up the genus _Hygrophorus_ and its members are thought to be
mycorrhizal with trees, e.g. _H. hypothejus_ (Fries) Fries with pine,
the ‘Herald of the winter’ because it occurs at the end of the fungus
season and _H. chrysaspis_ Métrod, a whitish, sickly-smelling fungus
under beech. Results from examining the anatomy of the gills appears to
confirm these divisions. All the Hygrophori have a homogeneous flesh,
white spores, central, fleshy stem and thick, waxy gills;
microscopically this group of fungi can be recognised by the very long
basidia.

The following are common examples of the genus Hygrocybe:--


  ~H. calyptraeformis~ (Berkeley & Broome) Fayod has a rose-pink,
  conical cap which expands to become upturned at the edge with age.


  ~H. coccinea~ (Fries) Kummer has a bright scarlet cap which becomes
  yellow-ochre on drying and a yellow base to a scarlet stem.


  ~H. conica~ (Fries) Kummer has an orange to red stem and sharply
  conical cap which turns blackish with age and whose gills when cut
  exude a clear watery liquid.


  ~H. flavescens~ (Kauffman) Singer has a slimy, golden yellow cap and
  similarly coloured stem.


  ~H. chlorophana~ is similar, but has a lemon-yellow cap and stem.


  ~H. punicea~ (Fries) Kummer is a large and robust species, similar in
  colour to _H. coccinea_ but with a white base to the stem.


  ~H. unguinosa~ (Fries) Karsten has a smoky grey, very slimy cap and
  stem.


  ~H. nitrata~ (Persoon) Wunsche is as dull coloured as _H. unguinosa_,
  but is not slimy, and in addition strongly smells of cleaning fluid or
  bleaching-powder. It is one of three dull coloured, strong
  bleaching-powder-smelling species found in Britain. _H. ovina_ is
  another, but is darker than _H. nitrata_ and becomes red when bruised
  or cut.

[Illustration: Plate 27. Fleshy brightly coloured fungi: Spores white
and borne on thick, waxy gills]


  ~H. metapodia~ (Fries) Moser has a sooty brown fibrillose-streaky cap
  and stem. The gills are distant and grey, and the fruit-body may reach
  up to 100 mm across. It is probably the biggest of our native species
  of _Hygrocybe_.

For completion examples of _Hygrophorus_ include:


  ~H. bresadolae~ Quélet has a slimy orange-yellow cap, yellow gills and
  yellow, slimy, smooth stem. It is found under larch trees.


  ~H. chrysaspis~ Métrod has ivory white cap, stem and gills which soon
  become flushed with rust-brown and finally the whole fruit-body
  becomes red-brown. The stem is slimy and white dotted at the apex. It
  grows in beech woods.


  ~H. hedrychii~ Velenovsky has a slimy cream-coloured cap flushed with
  pale peach colour. The gills and stem are cream and the latter slimy
  and dotted at the top. It is found in pine woods.


  ~H. hypothejus~ (Fries) Fries has an olive-brown slimy cap, yellow
  stem and gills; the stem is slimy and smooth. It is found in pine
  woods and under pines on heaths.


  ~H. pustulatus~ (Persoon) Fries has an ash-grey cap brownish towards
  its centre, viscid white stem with dark grey dots at the apex and
  white gills. _H. agathosmus_ (Secretan) Fries is similar, but smells
  strongly of bitter almonds. Both species are found in plantations.

  Species of the genus _Hygrophorus_ are infrequently encountered in
  Britain, although twenty species are recorded for the British Isles.
  They are ecologically distinct from members of the genus _Hygrocybe_
  in preferring woodland communities to grassland areas; they are
  probably mycorrhizal. The anatomy of the fruit-body is also rather
  different to that found in _Hygrocybe_; the gill-trama is bilateral as
  in _Leccinum_ (p. 27), _Suillus_ (p. 28), _Boletus_ (p. 31),
  _Chroogomphus_ (p. 36), _Paxillus_ (p. 38) and _Amanita_ (p. 54).
  Members of the genus _Hygrocybe_ have regular to irregular
  gill-tramas. In fact, although both genera are united into a single
  family, the Hygrophoraceae is based on one character common to both,
  i.e. the long basidium; there is every indication that the genus
  _Hygrocybe_ has greater affinity to _Omphalina_ in the
  Tricholomataceae (p. 232).

  Surprisingly enough in North America many of our familiar grassland
  species including _H. pratensis_ are to be found in deep shaded
  woodland!


Angular, pink-spored agarics--Rhodophyllaceae

The name of the family refers to the pink gills and it unites all those
fungi with a salmon-pinkish buff spore-print and whose spores are
angular in all optical sections. There are a few agarics, e.g.
_Clitopilus prunulus_ (Fries) Kummer with ridged spores which appear
angular in end-on view, but which are ellipsoid in both side and face
views and so are considered less related.

The family _Rhodophyllaceae_ by some authorities contains one genus
_Rhodophyllus_, more correctly called _Entoloma_; in the British Isles
five constituent genera are recognised, but they will have to be more
critically defined to make a more meaningful classification. At the
moment, many of the species are poorly documented and it would appear
that anatomical studies will assist in the future in the recognition of
species-groups.

If one selects the eight most distinctive shaped spore-types exhibited
in members of this family, then when their spores are examined side-on a
feature is available for correlation with the traditional field
characters, such as cap scaliness and gill-attachment. The most
distinctive spore-shape is Type G, found in _Nolanea staurospora_
Bresadola, which is probably the most common and widespread species of
the family. It grows in woodlands, grassland and on lawns and will be
dealt with later (p. 122). The other spore types are illustrated and
range from irregularly rhomboid to elongate angular.

The majority of the members of this group grow in grassland,
hill-pastures and meadows and distinct communities containing members of
this family and of the _Hygrophoraceae_ can be recognised. It is not
proposed to deal in detail with any individual members because they can
be so easily confused with each other by the specialist let alone by the
amateur.

However, the genera as at present accepted are as follows:--

  1. ~Entoloma~ in its original sense contains agarics with fleshy caps,
  fibrous stems and sinuate or adnexed gills, e.g. _Ent. clypeatum_
  (Fries) Kummer with grey to yellow-brown cap, found growing with
  members of the apple and rose-family in the summer and early autumn.
  This genus corresponds to _Calocybe_ in the white-spored agarics (p.
  110).

  2. ~Leptonia~ contains those agarics with rather thin caps whose
  margin is incurved, cartilaginous stems and adnate to adnexed, rarely
  decurrent, gills and whose cap flesh is indistinct from that of the
  stem, e.g. _Lept. serrulata_ (Fries) Kummer with dark blue to
  violet-blue cap and dark blue edge to the gills. This genus approaches
  the tough-shanks (_Collybia_) in the white-spored genera (p. 90).

  3. ~Nolanea~ is characterised by agarics with delicate caps, whose
  flesh is distinct from that of the stem and whose edge is straight and
  pressed against the fragile stem when young, and the adnexed or
  adnate, rarely decurrent, gills, e.g. _N. staurospora_ (see p. 122).
  _N. cetrata_ (Fries) Kummer with yellow-brown to tan-coloured cap is
  found from spring to autumn in conifer woodland, especially
  plantations. The genus corresponds to _Mycena_ in the white-spored
  agaric genera (p. 68).

  4. ~Eccilia~ is a small genus containing agarics with thin, membranous
  caps and distinctly decurrent gills, e.g. _E. sericeonitida_ P. D.
  Orton with convex, then umbilicate, silky greyish brown cap. This
  genus corresponds to _Omphalina_ in the white-spored agarics (p. 232).

  5. ~Claudopus~ has three British representatives, all of which have a
  very small stem which may even be absent, e.g. _C. depluens_ (Fries)
  Gillet grows on soil and _C. parasiticus_ (Quélet) Ricken grows on old
  decaying fruit-bodies of woody fungi. This genus corresponds to
  _Pleurotellus_ in the white-spored genera and to _Crepidotus_ in the
  brown-spored genera (p. 77).

[Illustration: Plate 28. Fleshy fungi: Spores pinkish and angular and
borne on gills - Rhodophyllaceae]


~Cystoderma amianthinum~ (Fries) Fayod

  _Cap_: width 15-35 mm. _Stem_: width 4-8 mm; length 15-30 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: pale ochraceous yellow to sand-colour, convex then expanded, with
  central umbo and often radially wrinkled-reticulate, covered
  completely in powdery granules when fresh but these gradually
  disappear with age or on excessive handling.

  Stem: slender, white above a narrow, easily lost ring which is
  composed of floccose, ochraceous yellow granules which also clothe the
  lower part of the stem.

  Gills: adnate, cream-coloured and crowded.

  Flesh: yellowish with a strong smell of new-mown hay.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: small to medium sized, hyaline under the microscope, smooth,
  ellipsoid, 5-7 × 3-4 µm and becoming blue-grey when mounted in
  solutions containing iodine.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Frequently found amongst grass on heaths,
  in hill-pastures and in woodlands from summer to autumn.

  _General Information_: This fungus is recognised by the
  gill-attachment and the powdery-scurfy cap formed by the breaking up
  of an enveloping veil composed of thick-walled, rounded cells, similar
  to those on the surface of the stem.

  This fungus was formerly placed in the genus _Lepiota_ because of the
  ring but the veil in _Cystoderma amianthinum_ is formed in quite a
  different way to the ring in the true parasol mushrooms. The gills are
  also adnate and not free as in the true species of _Lepiota_ (see p.
  112). _C. carcharias_ (Secretan) Fayod is found under similar
  conditions, but is white or flesh-coloured. _C. cinnabarinum_
  (Secretan) Fayod is also found in short grass and moss, but has a
  cinnabar-red, floccose cap and _C. granulosum_ (Fries) Fayod is
  yellowish brown with non-amyloid spores and adnexed gills.

  Many authorities prefer to connect this small group of closely related
  species more to members of the _Tricholomataceae_ (i.e. the family
  which contains the Wood Blewits (p. 131), _Mycena_ (p. 68, etc.) than
  to the parasol mushrooms--_Lepiota_ (p. 112).

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 23; LH 129; NB 103⁷; WD 8⁴.

[Illustration: Plate 29. Fleshy fungi: Spores white and borne on gills]


~Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca~ (Fries) Maire

  False chanterelle

  _Cap_: width 25-70 mm. _Stem_: width 4-7 mm; length 25-50 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: bright orange-yellow or apricot, fleshy, soft, depressed at
  centre and with wavy, incurved, slightly downy margin.

  Stem: yellow at apex, rich red-brown or orange about the middle and
  sometimes dark brown at the very base.

  Gills: decurrent, deep orange, thin, crowded, repeatedly forked and
  easily separable from the cap-tissue.

  Flesh: yellowish, pale in the cap, darker in the stem.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium sized, hyaline under the microscope, ellipsoid or
  pip-shaped, smooth, 7-8 × 4 µm and red-brown when mounted in solutions
  of iodine.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common in woodlands, particularly with
  pines, and on heaths or in rough hill-pastures.

  _General Information_: This fungus is recognisable by the orange or
  yellow cap and stem and the decurrent gills. It was formerly placed in
  _Cantharellus_ because of the colours, white spores and the decurrent
  gills, but it really differs in many other respects. It is true,
  however, that it is frequently confused with the true Chanterelle
  (_Cantharellus cibarius_ Fries, p. 162) by those who do not inspect
  their specimens carefully. The gills are thin, plate-like as in other
  agarics and not fold-like as in _Cantharellus_ (see p. 162). The
  Chanterelle is edible and sought after as a delicacy, but there are
  varying reports as to the edibility of _Hygrophoropsis_. Certainly it
  is not of the best quality and there is evidence for it causing
  upsets: therefore it is best to take the name ‘False Chanterelle’ at
  face value and treat this fungus as truely false; ‘aurantiaca’ means
  orange-coloured and refers to the colour of the fungus.

  A pale form is frequently collected, particularly in hill-pastures,
  and is probably worthy of specific recognition. The cap is ochraceous
  yellow to cream and the stem distinctly dark in the lower half.

  There is some confusion as to the true position in classification of
  this fungus. The anatomical details of the fruit-body parallel those
  of _Paxillus involutus_ (Fries) Fries (see p. 38) although the
  spore-print is white. There is little doubt that future research will
  answer this problem.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 183; LH 185; NB 103¹; WD 16³.

[Illustration: Plate 30. Fleshy fungi: Spores white and borne on gills]


(b) Agarics of chalk-grassland and rich uplands


~Agaricus campestris~ Fries

  Field mushroom

  _Cap_: width 40-100 mm. _Stem_: width 12-20 mm; length 40-80 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: rounded then expanding to become plano-convex, fleshy with the
  margin incurved at first, initially pure white, but soon becoming
  cream-colour and at maturity streaked brownish particularly at the
  centre.

  Stem: white with a simple, very thin, white ring which becomes
  brownish on rubbing and is easily lost with age or by handling.

  Gills: free, pink but finally umber-brown at maturity.

  Flesh: white, flushed reddish when cut especially in the stem.

  Spore-print: cigar-brown, with hint of purple.

  Spores: medium sized, ellipsoid or egg-shaped, smooth, small, 7-8 ×
  4-5 µm and dark brown under the microscope.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent. Basidia 4-spored.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: The field-mushroom grows amongst grass in
  pastures, etc., and also on old lawns where it may form fairy-rings.

  _General Information_: This is the common wild, edible mushroom for
  which many people have in the past unwisely substituted many quite
  unrelated species. Deaths have often been caused by lack of careful
  observation when selecting wild fungi for the table; this only
  emphasises why white mushrooms found in fields should not be casually
  eaten.


  ~A. arvensis~ Secretan the Horse-mushroom is also edible, but is much
  bigger (up to 180 mm), creamy white and bruises slightly yellowish on
  handling; it also has larger spores (7-10 × 5 µm), club-shaped cells
  on the gill-edge, gills commencing white and not pink, and the
  presence of a complex ring.


  ~A. xanthodermus~ Genevier the ‘Yellow-staining mushroom’ has even
  smaller spores than the field mushroom, i.e. 5-6 × 4 µm and a rather
  strong, unpleasant smell; if eaten many people subsequently suffer
  from stomach-pains and this shows that even amongst those fungi which
  the scientist would call true mushrooms, i.e. those fungi in the genus
  _Agaricus_, there are some poisonous members. Thus it is always
  necessary to have wide experience before one collects fungi for eating
  and until this is achieved all specimens should be discarded.

  _Illustrations_: Field mushroom--Hvass 163; LH 133; NB 31⁶; WD 71².
  Horse mushroom--Hvass 160; LH 135; WD 72¹. Yellow-staining
  mushroom--Hvass 159; WD 71³.

[Illustration: Plate 31. Fleshy fungi: Spores purple-brown and borne on
gills]


~Calocybe gambosum~ (Fries) Singer.

  St George’s mushroom

  _Cap_: width 70-100 mm. _Stem_: width 15-25 mm; length 50-70 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: creamy white, ivory or light buff, slightly darker at the centre
  with age, fleshy, rounded and with wavy margin, finally expanding to
  become plane-convex; the margin is incurved and slightly downy at
  first.

  Stem: firm, rather thick, white at the top, creamy or buff below and
  slightly downy when fresh.

  Gills: sinuate to adnexed with a slight decurrent tooth, white to pale
  buff.

  Flesh: with a very strong smell of meal, white and thick.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: small, ellipsoid, smooth, hyaline under the microscope, 5-6 ×
  3-4 µm and not becoming blue-grey with solutions containing iodine.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Found amongst grass in base rich pastures,
  often in fairly large rings from April to June and on golf-courses
  particularly those near the sea.

  _General Information_: The common name refers to the early appearance
  of this agaric; St George’s Day is April 23rd, and this mushroom is
  found about this time in favourable years, its fruiting often
  extending into early June, particularly if the fruiting is retarded by
  a cold and wet spring. It is easily recognised by the pale colour of
  the cap, strong mealy smell, but particularly by its appearance in
  spring. In each new year it is probably the first of the larger
  agarics to appear. This species will be found in most books under the
  genus _Tricholoma_, but differs from typical members of this group in
  the anatomy and chemistry of the gill-tissues.

  The Latin name ‘gambosum’ is derived from ‘gamba’ meaning a hoof and
  this reflects the shape of the fleshy cap as it pushes up through the
  grass. Another much older name is _Tricholoma georgii_ (Fries) Quélet
  which was used by Clusius and is derived from the legend of St George.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 28; LH 83; WD 9².

[Illustration: Plate 32. Fleshy fungi: Spores white and borne on gills]


~Lepiota procera~ (Fries) S. F. Gray

  Parasol mushroom

  _Cap_: width 70-200 mm. _Stem_: width 12-20 mm; length 100-250 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: dull brown or greyish brown, oval or rounded at first, but later
  becoming bell-shaped, finally expanding but for the central umbo and
  the surface breaking up into shaggy scales.

  Stem: straight, tapering upwards from a slightly bulbous base, felty
  at first but then the surface breaking up into small patches which
  finally resemble the pattern of a snake-skin; there is also a large,
  thick, white ring which is brown below and becomes loose on the stem.

  Gills: remote, white, crowded and fairly broad.

  Flesh: white, thin, soft.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: very long, ellipsoid with a germ-pore, hyaline under the
  microscope about 16 × 10 µm (14-17 × 9-12 µm), and becoming reddish
  brown in solutions containing iodine.

  Marginal cystidia: variable, elongate balloon-shaped and hyaline.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Found from summer until mid-autumn, on the
  outskirts of copses, in fields, at edges of woodland or in woodland
  clearings; it is sometimes found in very large rings.

  _General Information_: When this fungus first appears through the soil
  it resembles a drum-stick with the margin of the unexpanded cap
  tightly hugging the stem. It is an easily recognised fungus because of
  its straight and graceful stature with large cap and tall stem. It is
  one of our best edible fungi and cannot be confused with any other
  agaric. _L. rhacodes_ (Vittadini) Quélet is not as elegant and has
  much smaller spores.

  _Illustrations_: F 26a; Hvass 15; LH 125; NB 31¹; WD 5¹.

[Illustration: Plate 33. Fleshy fungi: Spores white and borne on gills]


(c) Agarics of meadows and valley-bottom grasslands


~Psilocybe semilanceata~ (Secretan) Kummer

  Liberty caps

  _Cap_: width 8-14 mm; height up to 18 mm. _Stem_: width 4-6 mm; length
  50-70 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: sharply conical, in fact often with a very distinct apical point,
  never or very rarely becoming expanded, often fluted and puckered at
  the incurved margin, smooth, viscid, pale buff or clay colour, but
  soon flushed with greyish green at maturity and becoming free of the
  fibrils of veil which ornament the margin when young.

  Stem: slender, tough and smooth, similarly coloured to the cap and
  sometimes blueing at the base when picked.

  Gills: adnate to adnexed, crowded, purplish black except for white
  edge.

  Flesh: white or pallid.

  Spore-print: purple-brown.

  Spores: long, ellipsoid, slightly lemon-shaped, smooth and with a
  distinct germ-pore at one end and 12-14 × 7 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: bottle-shaped with an elongate tapering neck, with
  thin walls which at most become pale honey in solutions containing
  ammonia, unlike the cystidia of _Hypholoma_ (p. 64).

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Commonly growing amongst grass in fields
  near farm-yards, on heaths and by roadsides; often it occurs in small
  troops.

  _General Information_: _Psilocybe semilanceata_ is recognised by the
  uniquely shaped cap; ‘semilanceata’ means half spear-shaped, from the
  papilla at the top of the cap, giving it a pointed aspect. However,
  the common name is more descriptive and comes from the fact that these
  caps resemble the helmets worn by French soldiers in the early part of
  the century.

  This fungus was once very isolated amongst British agarics, but now it
  has been united with a group of small purplish brown-spored fungi
  formerly placed in the genus _Deconica_. What is of more interest is
  the fact that unlike many British agarics the cap often does not
  expand fully in order to release the spores. In this way it allows
  mycologists to hypothesise on how certain of the enclosed, stalked
  Gastromycetes evolved in some of the desert regions of the world.

  _Illustrations_: LH 149; NB 33¹¹; WD 78⁷.

[Illustration: Plate 34. Fleshy fungi: Spores purple-brown and borne on
gills]


~Conocybe tenera~ (Fries) Fayod

  Brown cone-cap

  _Cap_: width 10-20 mm. _Stem_: width 3-6 mm; length 70-100 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: very hygrophanous, sand colour, orange-yellow or ochraceous brown
  tinted cinnamon when fresh but drying uniformly yellow-ochre, thin,
  fragile, striate when moist, but soon non-striate as water is lost
  from the cap.

  Stem: tall, slender and similarly coloured to the cap, straight,
  fragile, minutely striate from the top to bottom with what appears to
  be minute powdery granules.

  Gills: adnate then becoming free, crowded, ochraceous and finally
  cinnamon-rust in colour.

  Flesh: russet when moist but rapidly becoming yellowish as the
  fruit-body dries.

  Spore-print: rust-brown.

  Spores: long, ellipsoid, with thick, bright yellow-brown walls and
  distinct germ-pores at their ends when seen under the microscope, and
  over 10 µm in length (11-12 × 6 µm.)

  Marginal cystidia: pinheaded or skittle-shaped.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This fungus grows in ones and twos, more
  rarely in troops amongst grass.

  _General Information_: This is one member of a whole complex group of
  ochraceous, brown, tawny or cinnamon-brown capped agarics which
  superficially appear to be the same, but on closer examination the
  expert can split them into several distinct species. The use of
  microscopic characters is essential and outside the scope of this book
  or the ordinary mushroom-picker’s manual. However, the closely related
  _C. lactea_ (J. Lange) Métrod can be more easily distinguished for it
  has a white or cream-coloured cap and stem. It also has larger broadly
  ellipsoid spores, measuring 12-14 × 6-9 µm, but the same shaped cells
  on the gill-edge.

  _Illustrations_: LH 153; NB 35⁴; WD 68².

[Illustration: Plate 35. Fleshy fungi: Spores brown and borne on gills]


(d) Fairy-ring formers

Many agarics grow in circles, but not all of them produce zones in the
vegetation. It is the distinct zonation caused by the ‘fairy-ring
champignon’ _Marasmius oreades_ (Fries) Fries and related fungi which
have given rise to the name of Fairy-ring and which resulted in the
foundation of many folk tales.

A fairy-ring can be divided into four distinct zones, a central zone of
fairly normally developed vegetation on the outside of which is a green,
actively growing zone of grass; outside this is a zone composed of brown
or dead vegetation. The outermost zone again appears to be far more lush
than the normal grass in the vicinity and it is in this last zone that
the fruit-bodies of the fungus causing the pattern appear.

A generalised explanation of the zoning appears to be as follows:--

In the outermost zone the actively growing mycelium decomposes soil
constituents and liberates nitrogenous material which is in turn taken
up by the plant roots nearby and utilised for their growth. In the
penultimate zone the grass is dead, probably not caused by a direct
parasitic attack but by the mycelial threads filling the air-spaces in
the soil and so inhibiting water flow. This destruction of the delicate
balance of water and air found in any soil induces drying out and
gradual death of the plants whose roots permeate the soil. Behind the
dead-zone is vegetation which shows increased vigour apparently due to
plant-nutrients being released by the decaying mycelium and
plant-material, whose death has been caused by the presence of the
fungus. The innermost zone is not so stimulated.

With nothing more than graph and tracing paper, a tape-measure,
note-book and pencil, pieces of cane about four inches long, and
coloured dye or indian ink, it is exciting to assess the annual radial
growth of fairy-rings and to correlate these with environmental
conditions. This can be carried out on a school lawn or on a home lawn;
the method and further experiments are given in Appendix iii.

[Illustration: Plate 36. Fairy-ring fungus--~Marasmius oreades~]


~Marasmius oreades~ (Fries) Fries

  Fairy-ring champignon

  _Cap_: width 25-60 mm. _Stem_: width 5-9 mm; length 30-80 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: pinkish tan with slight flush of brown at centre, hygrophanous
  and drying out buff-coloured or clay-coloured, convex at first then
  expanding to become plane, but for an obtuse umbo which is retained at
  the centre.

  Stem: pale buff, tough, flexible and smooth.

  Gills: adnexed, pale cream colour or pinkish buff and fairly distant.

  Flesh: whitish or pinkish tan, smelling of cherry laurel (cyanic).

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium sized, hyaline, pip-shaped, smooth, not staining bluish
  grey when mounted in solutions containing iodine and about 10 × 6 µm
  in size (9-11 × 5-6 µm).

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This agaric is very common from May to
  October on lawns and grass-verges.

  _General Information_: _M. oreades_ forms well developed fairy-rings,
  and is easily recognised by its tough nature, pale colours and ability
  to revive after having been dried. This ability to revive in moist
  weather even after the fruit-body has been dried by the sun or wind is
  a character which was used to distinguish members of the genus
  _Marasmius_. However, this is a very subjective character and since
  microscopic techniques were introduced and used widely in the study of
  agarics the genus has been delimited rather more critically.
  _Marasmius_ is close to _Collybia_ (p. 90), in fact many species
  appear in one book in one genus and in another book in the second
  genus; _M. oreades_ itself is not a typical member of the genus.
  _Marasmius_ seems to be a much more important genus in the tropical
  and subtropical regions of the world; we have already mentioned how
  some of the small species of _Marasmius_ in Europe grow only on leaves
  of a particular plant (see p. 92). _M. androsaceus_ (Fries) Fries (see
  p. 231) is the horse-hair fungus.

  _Illustrations_: F 19a; Hvass 81; LH 115; NB 35¹; WD 24¹⁰ (not very
  good).

[Illustration: Plate 37. Fleshy fungi reviving when moistened even after
drying: Spores white and borne on gills]


(e) Agarics of urban areas--lawn and parkland agarics


~Nolanea staurospora~ Bresadola

  _Cap_: width 20-40 mm. _Stem_: width 3-5 mm; length 45-70 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: bell-shaped at first then expanded, hygrophanous, date-brown,
  striate when moist but pale fawn or tan and non-striate when dry, and
  usually becoming quite silky-shiny.

  Stem: slender, fragile, greyish brown, silky fibrillose-striate and
  shiny.

  Gills: almost free, crowded and pale greyish brown when young, but
  finally flesh coloured.

  Flesh: brownish and smelling very strongly of meal when cut or broken
  between the fingers.

  Spore-print: salmon-pink with flush of cinnamon.

  Spores: medium sized, fawn under the microscope, star-shaped with 4-6
  prominent angles, 9-10 × 7-9 µm, smooth and with no germ-pore.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.


~Nolanea sericea~ (Mérat) P. D. Orton

  Silky nolanea

  _Cap_: width 25-40 mm. _Stem_: width 5-9 mm; length 25-50 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: convex then flattened or with slight umbo, umber-brown with a
  greyish cast which becomes accentuated as the cap dries out and
  finally becoming silky-shiny; the margin is incurved and striate at
  first but on expanding it becomes non-striate with time.

  Stem: short, fibrillose, greyish brown, shining and white at the base,
  very fragile and often snaps just above the soil-level when collected.

  Gills: crowded, adnate and pale greyish brown then pinkish brown.

  Flesh: with a strong smell of new meal, brownish becoming paler as it
  dries out.

  Spore-print: salmon-pink.

  Spores: medium sized, smooth, pale fawn under the microscope, angular
  almost cubic and 10-13 × 8-9 µm in size.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _General Information_: _Nolanea staurospora_ is very common amongst
  grass, in many habitats such as on heaths, and in woodlands and
  copses, but it is particularly common in pastures and on lawns. It is
  difficult to separate from close relatives on field-characters,
  except for the strong mealy smell; however, it is recognised
  immediately by the spore-shape, in fact stauro--means a cross and
  spora--spore!

[Illustration: Plate 38. Fleshy fungi: Spores pinkish and angular, and
borne on gills]

  Because of the flattened cap and gill-shape _N. sericea_ (Mérat) P. D.
  Orton was first placed in _Entoloma_, but for a long time it was one
  of the smallest members of that genus. The European species of
  _Nolanea_ have recently been critically analysed, and now that closely
  related species to the silky _Nolanea_ have been found, it appears
  better placed in _Nolanea_ although it is still found under _Entoloma_
  in many books. The Latin word ‘sericeum’ means silky and refers to the
  silky cap and stem of this fungus which is a very noticeable feature
  when the fungus is collected in the dry state. The common name which
  has been given to this fungus also refers to the silky nature of the
  fruit-body.

  _Illustrations_: _N. staurospora_--LH 181; ND 31²; WD 52². _N.
  sericea_--LH 181; WD 52⁵.


~Panaeolus foenisecii~ (Fries) Schroeter

  Brown hay-cap

  _Cap_: width 12-28 mm. _Stem_: width 3-6 mm; length 40-60 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: semiglobate to convex and hardly expanding even with age, smooth,
  expallent, dull cinnamon-brown or dark tan-colour, becoming
  clay-colour or pale cinnamon-colour from centre outwards on drying and
  so sometimes appearing as if it is zoned.

  Stem: slender, fragile, smooth and pale cinnamon-brown, except at apex
  where it is dotted with white; it is usually more brownish below.

  Gills: adnate, crowded, pale brown and mottled, but becoming more
  uniformly umber-brown except for whitish margin.

  Flesh: whitish or pale cinnamon colour.

  Spore-print: purple-brown.

  Spores: long, lemon-shaped under the microscope, dull brown, warted
  all over but for the distinct germ-pore; 12-15 × 7-8 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: variable spindle-shaped with flexuous neck and
  subcapitate apex, about 5-6 µm wide.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common amongst short grass on lawns, in
  pastures, on grass-verges, etc., from May until October.

[Illustration: Plate 39. Fleshy fungi: Spores purple-brown and born on
gills]

  _General Information_: _P. foenisecii_ is recognised under the
  microscope by the ornamented spores; this character was used to
  separate this fungus in the new genus _Panaeolina_. However, although
  the spore-print is not exactly black the stature, mottled gills and
  anatomy conform closely with _Panaeolus sphinctrinus_ (Fries) Quélet
  and _P. rickenii_ Hora (see p. 210 and below respectively). The same
  fungus has been placed in _Psilocybe_ (see p. 114), but it has little
  in common with members of that genus. The word ‘foenisecii’ means
  hay-harvest, reflecting the habitat of growing in fields. This fungus
  is variable in colour depending on its state of turgidity; it can be
  easily confused with other species of _Panaeolus_ when moist and with
  certain species of _Conocybe_ when dry. _P. rickenii_ is an equally
  common agaric growing on similar or slightly less base-rich
  soil-types. It has a distinctly bell-shaped reddish brown cap with a
  pale incurved margin which in wet weather is, like the entire stem,
  beaded with droplets of liquid. This gives the fungus a glistening
  appearance when seen fresh and as it dries these droplets are lost and
  the cap becomes slightly zoned. The stem is pale reddish-brown with a
  strong frosted appearance because of the minute hairs which cover it.
  I have no doubt that the classification of these fungi will be
  assisted by careful analysis of the shapes of the hairs found in the
  different species.

  _Illustrations_: _Panaeolina foenisecii_--LH 145; WD 78⁴. _Panaeolus
  rickenii_--LH 145.


(f) Agarics of wasteland and hedgerows


~Coprinus comatus~ (Fries) S. F. Gray

  Lawyer’s wig

  _Cap_: width 30-60 mm; height 80-200 mm. _Stem_: width 10-20 mm;
  length 80-250 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 40.

  Cap: at first cylindrical or oval then bell-shaped, fleshy, fragile,
  white and covered with woolly, whitish, shaggy scales which have brown
  tips; the centre of the cap is smooth and yellow to ochraceous whilst
  the margin becomes striate and lilaceous and finally black as the
  tissue liquefies (autodigests) and the margin rolls up to expose new
  areas of spore-bearing tissue.

  Stem: tall, white, smooth and tapered towards the apex, with a white
  ring which can easily move up and down the stem with handling, and
  which soon disappears with age.

[Illustration: Plate 40. Fleshy fungi becoming reduced to an inky mass:
Spores black and borne on gills]

  Gills: free at first, white then pink and finally black, becoming
  gradually dissolved into a black fluid from the base of the cap
  upwards.

  Flesh: white, thin, except immediately in the central area of the cap.

  Spore-print: blackish-purple.

  Spores: long, elongate-ellipsoid, large and about 13 × 5-8 µm in size,
  (12-15 × 7-9 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: elongate club-shaped to balloon-shaped, hyaline and
  thin-walled.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Grows in clusters on rich ground, in
  gardens, on sides of newly prepared roads and central reservations of
  motor-ways, on path-sides, in cultivated fields and on rubbish dumps;
  it grows from spring to autumn and sometimes occurs in huge troops.

  _General Information_: Easily recognised by its size, the shape of the
  cap with its scaly surface and from its resemblance to a ‘judge’s
  wig’; it is frequently called the ‘lawyer’s wig’ and whereas some
  common names are not very descriptive and one has to use a lot of
  imagination to conjure up what the common name implies, in this case
  it is not so. It is also known as the ‘shaggy cap’ or ‘shaggy
  ink-cap’. Ink or inky cap is, however, a common name for many species
  of the genus _Coprinus_ (see p. 211-4).

  The unrelated _Lyophyllum decastes_ (Fries) Singer and _L. connatum_
  (Fries) Singer are also common fungi growing on roadsides, on soil and
  compost-heaps. They too break through embankments, soil, paths, etc.,
  producing large craters and mounds of debris.

  _Illustrations_: _Coprinus comatus_--F 34^{b}; Hvass 172; LH 137; NB
  35⁵; WD 82². _Lyophyllum decastes_--LH 81; WD 14².


~Lacrymaria velutina~ (Fries) Konrad & Maublanc

  Weeping widow

  _Cap_: width 45-90 mm. _Stem_: width 8-14 mm; length 50-125 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 41.

  Cap: convex then expanded with obtuse central umbo, dull clay-brown or
  date-brown and at first covered with flattened, woolly fibrils which
  are gradually lost with age; the margin is incurved and fringed with
  remnants of the veil.

  Stem: fragile, pale dingy-coloured or clay-coloured at apex, dull
  brown below the ring-zone which consists of white fibrils; later in
  development these fibrils catch the spores and the stem becomes black
  and fibrillose-scaly, particularly below the ring-zone.

[Illustration: Plate 41. Fleshy fungi: Spores blackish and borne on
gills]

  Gills: sinuate, crowded and very dark brown or almost black with
  distinct white margin which is covered in tiny beads of liquid in
  moist weather.

  Flesh: pale buff.

  Spore-print: almost black.

  Spores: long, dark brown, lemon-shaped and warted with distinct and
  prominent germ-pore and 10-12 × 6-7 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: club-shaped or with a distinctly rounded head.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common on the ground near newly built
  houses, on roadsides, tips and paths in woods, either solitary or in
  groups; it is also found in pastures.

  _General Information_: The fibrillose scaly cap and stem and the
  almost black gills which frequently have liquid droplets at their edge
  separate this species from all other agarics and microscopically it
  can be easily recognised by the warted spores. ‘Velutina’ means
  velvety and refers to the texture of the cap-surface, of the young
  fruit-body. The genus name _Lacrymaria_ refers to this peculiar, but
  certainly not unique, phenomenon, of exuding liquid from cells on the
  gill-edge. This has been compared with weeping and ‘lacrymans’ means
  weeping; the common name reflects this also--weeping widow (cf. p.
  154).

  This fungus has had a chequered history, for it is also known in some
  books as _Hypholoma lacrymabunda_ (again meaning weeping) or _H.
  velutina_; the anatomy of the fungus, however, is quite different to
  _Hypholoma_ (e.g. _H. fasciculare_ p. 64). More recently it has found
  a place in _Psathyrella_, but it seems unsatisfactorily placed there
  because of the warty spores, black spore-print and fibrillose
  cap-surface; it warrants a separate genus, i.e., _Lacrymaria_. _L.
  pyrotricha_ (Fries) Konrad & Maublanc is the only other British
  species of this genus but it has a bright orange cap colour; it is
  rare.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 180; LH 141; WD 86³.


~Lepista nuda~ (Fries) Cooke

  Wood blewits

  _Cap_: width 70-100 mm. _Stem_: width 10-15 mm; length 70-100 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 42.

  Cap: rounded then flattened or slightly depressed in the centre,
  smooth, bluish lilac, or violaceous when young but gradually with age
  becoming reddish-brown, with or without a flush of wine colour.

  Stem: similarly coloured to the cap, equal, fleshy, elastic,
  fibrillose and streaky.

  Gills: adnate with or without a decurrent tooth, crowded, lilac and
  easily separable from the cap-tissue by the fingers.

  Flesh: bluish violaceous, but drying out dirty buff in the base of the
  stem.

  Spore-print: flesh-coloured.

  Spores: medium-sized, ellipsoid appearing smooth but very minutely
  roughened under the microscope, although it is very difficult to see
  except with a good instrument (6-8 × 4-5 µm in size).

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Widespread in troops or small groups in
  copses and under hedgerows and not uncommon in flower-beds in gardens
  in late autumn and early winter especially on compost heaps and in
  rhubarb patches which have been mulched with piles of moribund leaves.

  _General Information_: This fungus was originally placed in
  _Tricholoma_, but due to differences in anatomy and the distinctly
  coloured and ornamented spores it has been placed along with ‘common
  blewits’ _T. personatum_ (Fries) Kummer (or better _L. saeva_ (Fries)
  P. D. Orton), in the genus _Lepista_. This genus which is also called
  _Rhodopaxillus_, again referring to the pinkish spore-print, is not
  found in many of the easily obtainable books. One should look for the
  fungus under _Tricholoma_, from which it can be separated easily by
  the beautiful colour.

  Both the ‘wood blewits’ and ‘common blewits’ have been regularly sold
  in markets in England within the last fifty years. They are edible and
  considered of high quality. In their fresh state they are easily
  recognised, but as they age they become browned and so resemble many
  other less desirable fungi.

  _Illustrations_: F 17^{d}; Hvass 49; LH 91; NB 125²; WD 12³ (a bit too
  pastel).

[Illustration: Plate 42. Fleshy fungi: Spores pale pinkish and borne on
gills]


~Agaricus bisporus~ (J. Lange) Pilát

  Common mushroom

  _Cap_: width 40-100 mm. _Stem_: width 15-25 mm; length 50-75 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 43.

  Cap: rounded gradually expanding to become plane, whitish with
  numerous brown radiating fibrils and with the margin irregular because
  of fragments from the ring which are left there after expansion of the
  cap.

  Stem: short, cylindrical, smooth, bruising reddish-brown when handled
  and with a narrow ring which soon collapses and disappears.

  Gills: free, pink at first then purple-brown, narrow and crowded.

  Flesh: solid, thick, firm and slowly flushing brownish on cutting.

  Spore-print: purple-brown.

  Spores: medium-sized, broadly ellipsoid, purple-brown under the
  microscope, less than 10 µm long, (6-8 × 5-6 µm).

  Marginal cystidia: club-shaped, 10-12 µm at apex.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  Basidia: 2-spored.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Frequent on manure heaps, straw heaps, on
  road scrapings and around garden plants.

  _General Information_: This fungus is recognised by the dark fibrils
  on the cap, the 2-spored basidia easily seen with the low power of a
  microscope, and the pink gills when young. Much confusion has existed
  over this fungus and its nearest relatives. It is similar to the
  ‘Cultivated mushroom’, _A. hortensis_ (Cooke) Pilát, which is offered
  for sale in shops. However, it differs in several minor details and it
  may be that _A. bisporus_ is the fungus from which the cultivated
  mushroom developed, very probably unconsciously by man, but the
  history of the cultivated mushroom is very obscure. The cultivated
  mushroom when bought in British shops is white but in the United
  States two varieties are sold, one with the brownish fibrils
  predominating and a snow-white one where the fibrils do not darken;
  the former is frequently found in Europe. The white form is sometimes
  found in gardens where spent-mushroom spawn is used as mulching around
  fruit-trees but it has a rounder cap than _A. bisporus_. The
  cultivated mushroom accounts for an annual income of £14 million in
  the British Isles.

  _Illustrations_: _A. hortensis_--LH 133 (as the forma _albida_); NB
  31⁷; WD 71¹. _A. bisporus_--Hvass 161; LH 133.

[Illustration: Plate 43. Fleshy fungi: Spores purple-brown and borne on
gills]




B. BRACKET-FUNGI AND THEIR RELATIVES


_Key to major genera_

A group of fungi which includes the bracket fungi, hedgehog fungi,
fairy-clubs and their relatives; in the majority of species the margin
continues to grow through the favourable part of the season and so often
envelopes leaves, grass, etc.

   1. Spore-bearing layer (hymenium) quite smooth, spread over veins or
      shallow pores; fruit-body top-shaped, fan-shaped or club-shaped,
      or spread over the substrate (resupinate)                        2

      Spore-bearing layer lining the inner surface of tubes or borne on
      warts or spines                                                 17

   2. Fruit-body club-shaped, coral-shaped or distinctly funnel-shaped,
      fan-like or resembling an agaric                                 3

      Fruit-body resupinate or with poorly developed cap              11

   3. Fruit-body coral-like or club-shaped with clubs grouped or
      branched                                                         4

      Fruit-body resembling an agaric or funnel-shaped to fan-shaped   9

   4. Fruit-body large, branched with flattened and curled lobes and so
      resembling a cauliflower                               _Sparassis_

      Fruit-body of single or grouped clubs or if branched then not
      resembling a cauliflower, the lobes being cylindrical or only
      slightly flattened and hardly bent                               5

   5. Fruit-body small arising from a seed-like structure or growing
      attached to dead herbaceous plant remains                        6

      Fruit-body medium to large, simple or branched and usually growing
      on the ground; one large species grows on wood                   7

   6. Fruit-body arising from a seed-like body embedded in the
      plant-tissue or found loose in the soil                  _Typhula_

      Fruit-body on dead plant-remains but seed-like structure absent
                                                           _Pistillaria_

   7. Fruit-body much branched; spores ornamented (see also _Thelephora_
      below)                                                   _Ramaria_

      Fruit-body simple or if with well-developed branches then spores
      smooth                                                           8

   8. Fruit-body branched irregularly with many to few branches, grey,
      white or drab-coloured; spores large, subglobose and smooth
                                                             _Clavulina_

      Fruit-body club-shaped or if branched then brightly coloured and
      spores not large and subglobose
                         _Clavaria_, _Clavulinopsis_ & _Clavariadelphus_

   9. Fruit-body resembling an agaric with spores borne on fold-like,
      often forked and shallow ridges and veins, and often brightly
      coloured
             _Cantharellus_ (compare carefully with _Craterellus_ below)

      Fruit-body funnel-shaped or fan-shaped                          10

  10. Fruit-body often drab colour or greyed with smooth or slightly
      veined outer surface                                 _Craterellus_

      Fruit-body wrinkled, irregular or smooth and powdery, lilaceous to
      chocolate-brown in colour                             _Thelephora_

  11. Fruit-body sessile or resupinate and fleshy; spores borne on veins
      united to form shallow pores                                    12

      Fruit-body resupinate or bracket-like, and spore-surface veined or
      rugulose but lacking distinct pores                             13

  12. Spores colourless                                       _Merulius_

      Spores brown                                             _Serpula_

  13. Spore-bearing layer containing long, brown spines   _Hymenochaete_

      Fruit-body lacking spines although often having encrusted sterile
      cells                                                           14

  14. Surface of fruit-body more or less radiately veined      _Phlebia_

      Surface of fruit-body not radiately veined                      15

  15. Spores brown                                          _Coniophora_

      Spores colourless                                               16

  16. Flesh distinctly formed and fruit-body with or without a well
      formed cap                              _Stereum_ & related genera

      Flesh poorly differentiated and fruit-body lacking a cap
                   members of the Corticiaceae (including _Peniophora_ &
                                                   _Hyphodontia_ p. 176)

  17. Spores borne on teeth or spines                                 18

      Spore-bearing layer lining tubes or elongate pores              22

  18. Fruit-body with central stem; agaric-like but not attached to
      cones                                                           19

      Fruit-body encrusting or bracket-like, or with lateral stem if
      resembling an agaric                                            20

  19. Fruit-body fleshy                      _Hydnum_ and related genera

      Fruit-body rubbery or tough         _Hydnellum_ and related genera

  20. Fruit-body growing attached to cones and cap with lateral stem
                                                          _Auriscalpium_

      Fruit-body not on cones and distinct stem lacking               21

  21. Spores borne on a series of radially arranged knotches resembling
      gills                                                _Lentinellus_

      Spores borne on a resupinate layer of spines
                                           _Mycoacia_ and related genera

  22. Tubes free one from another                            _Fistulina_

      Tubes united to form a distinct tissue                          23

  23. Fruit-body perennial and exhibiting more than one layer of tubes
                                                                      24

      Fruit-body annual although the fruit-body can persist in a dried
      depauperate form for several months                             27

  24. Spores brown                                                    25

      Spores colourless                                               26

  25. Large, brown, sterile cells present in the tubes; spores simple
                                             _Phellinus_ & _Cryptoderma_

      Brown, sterile cells absent from tubes; spores complex _Ganoderma_

  26. Large woody fruit-body with crust-like top                 _Fomes_

      Medium sized to small, fleshy-tough fruit-body with downy or
      crust-like top         _Oxyporus_, _Fomitopsis_ & _Heterobasidion_

  27. Spores borne in labyrinth-like or elongate pores, or cap either
      poorly developed or absent, and only resupinate pore-surface
      present                                                         28

      Spores borne in distinct pores on well-developed woody
      fruit-bodies                                                    31

  28. Spores borne in labyrinth-like pores   _Daedalea_ & _Daedaleopsis_

      Spores borne in elongate pores like very thick gills, or
      fruit-body completely resupinate                                29

  29. Spore-layer lining elongate pores
                             _Lenzites_ (white) & _Gloeophyllum_ (brown)

      Spore-layer consisting of a resupinate pore-layer               30

  30. Pore-layer totally resupinate; flesh very poorly developed
                                        _Fibuloporia_ and related genera

      Fruit-body resupinate or developing ill-formed caps at the margin;
      flesh well-developed and quite tough
                                _Datronia_, _Gloeoporus_ & _Bjerkandera_

  31. Fruit-body with a distinct stem                                 32

      Fruit-body sessile or with a poorly developed stem, or if merely
      with a basal swelling then pores bruising                       33

  32. Pores dark-coloured but spores pale-coloured in mass
                                 _Coltricia_ (also see _Phaeolus_ below)

      Pores white or creamy, foot often darkened or black, and spores
      hyaline                                                _Polyporus_

  33. Pores brightly coloured, red, lilaceous or orange to
      apricot-colour                                                  34

      Pores never as brightly coloured, cream, white, grey or in some
      shade of brown                                                  35

  34. Pores red to orange-red                               _Pycnoporus_

      Pores lilac to violaceous, or lilaceous orange to apricot colour
            _Hapalopilus_ (orange-apricot) & _Hirschioporus_ (lilaceous)

  35. Pore-surface brown or dark grey and spores often colourless     36

      Pore-surface white or creamy, or yellow; spores hyaline         38

  36. Pore-surface firm and grey                           _Bjerkandera_

      Pore-surface greenish yellow, bruising brown or yellow-brown and
      darkening with age                                              37

  37. Fruit-body lacking a stem, rust-brown, breaking easily, cheesy and
      with silky sheen                                        _Inonotus_

      Fruit-body with a broad basal hump, fibrillose spongy with yellow
      margin to cap                                           _Phaeolus_

  38. Tubes forming a layer quite distinct from the flesh; fruit-body
      fleshy and tough                                                39

      Tubes not forming a layer distinct from the flesh; fruit-body
      woody or corky                                                  43

  39. Pore-surface bright yellow; upper surface yellow or orange
                                                            _Laetiporus_

      Pore-surface white                                              40

  40. Fruit-body medium to large, shell-shaped, whitish brown or silvery
      grey on top; on birch                                 _Piptoporus_

      Fruit-body often frond-like, infrequently shell-shaped and if on
      birch then small                                                41

  41. Fruit-body fan- or frond-shaped, composed of innumerable more or
      less complete caps joined together at their base or to half-way
                                                 _Grifola_ & _Meripilus_

      Fruit-body neither fan-shaped nor frond-shaped and compound     42

  42. Fruit-body wholly pale-coloured white, cream, ivory, etc.
                                                             _Tyromyces_

      Fruit-body except pores usually some shade of brown    _Polyporus_

  43. Cap thick, corky or woody and pores medium or large
                                           _Trametes_ & _Pseudotrametes_

      Cap thin but leathery and pores small                   _Coriolus_


(i) Pored and toothed fungi


(a) Colonisers of tree trunks, stumps and branches


~Polyporus squamosus~ Fries

  Scaly polypore

  _Cap_: 100-300 mm. _Stem_: width 25-50 mm; length 25-75 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: fan-shaped or semicircular, spreading horizontally with age,
  ochre-yellow or straw-coloured with dark brown, flattened scales in
  concentric zones which are much more dense at the centre.

  Stem: short, stout, white at apex and netted with pale creamy buff
  about middle, but dark brown or black towards the base and attached to
  the side of the cap.

  Tubes: whitish to yellowish and decurrent with large, angular,
  irregularly fringed, whitish or cream-coloured pores.

  Flesh: with strong, not very pleasant smell, cream-coloured or white.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: long, oblong or elongate ellipsoid, hyaline under the
  microscope (10-15 × 4-5 µm) and not blueing in solutions containing
  iodine.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: An easily recognisable fungus growing on
  stumps and old living trees, especially of sycamore and elm where it
  often forms tiers of caps from late spring until autumn; however, they
  decompose rapidly and almost completely disappear by the next year
  when new fruit-bodies may appear in the same place, a phenomenon which
  may take place for several consecutive seasons.

  _General Information_: The genus _Polyporus_ is in most text-books, a
  big and unwieldy genus joining together all fleshy, annual fungi
  possessing tubes; even the boleti (see p. 32) have been included! Many
  of these species are now considered less closely related one to
  another than previously thought. Boleti differ from polypores,
  however, in their less tough and distinctly putrescent fruit-body, and
  in the fact that the margin of the cap extends but does not continue
  to grow during the life-cycle; the margin of the polypore fruit-body
  is active and may burst into growth again when favourable weather
  conditions occur. The ‘Scaly polypore’ has a flesh which consists of
  two types of hyphae: (i) hyphae of unlimited growth with abundant
  protoplasmic contents which stain easily and which collapse on drying;
  and (ii) thick-walled, strengthening hyphae which bind the thin walled
  hyphae together. _Laetiporus sulphureus_ (Fries) Murrill ‘Sulphur
  polypore’ has a single type of hyphae in the tubes, i.e. thin walled
  generative, and only a few binding hyphae in the flesh. It has an
  orange cap with a rather thick, sulphur or chrome-yellow margin,
  sulphur-yellow tubes and pores and yellow, then pale buff, flesh. The
  spore-print is white and the spores hyaline, pip-shaped and medium
  sized, (5-7 × 4-5 µm).

  _Illustrations_: _P. squamosus_--F 43^{b}; Hvass 267; LH 75; NB 129¹;
  WD 94¹. _L. sulphureus_--Hvass 268; LH 73; NB 129³; WD 94².

[Illustration: Plate 44. Woody fungi: Spores white and borne within
tubes--fruit-body annual]


Some common annual polypores


~Piptoporus betulinus~ (Fries) Karsten

  Birch polypore

  Cap: 75-200 mm, kidney-shaped or hoof-shaped, smooth, covered by a
  thin, separable and greyish silvery or pale brownish skin; cap-margin
  thick, incurved and projects beyond the tubes.

  Stem: rudimentary, simply a small hump below which the fungus
  develops.

  Tubes, pores and spore-print: white.

  Spores: sausage-shaped, and thin-walled hyaline under the microscope
  and very narrow, (5-6 × 1-2 µm). It grows on birch throughout the
  country where it causes a sap wood-rot which finally converts the
  inner timber to a red-brown friable mass. The flesh, which contains
  thickened binding hyphae, is used for mounting insects and for
  sharpening knives, hence the common name ‘Razor-strop fungus’.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 269; LH 67; NB 117⁴; WD 93³.


~Inonotus hispidus~ (Fries) Karsten

  Shaggy polypore

  Cap: 100-250 mm, kidney-shaped, yellow-brown to rust-brown, but
  finally almost black, at first covered with shaggy hairs, but these
  tend to mat together with age.

  Stem: absent.

  Tubes and flesh: rust-colour; pores at first yellow, but finally
  red-brown.

  Spore-print: yellow-brown.

  Spores: medium sized (8-9 × 7-8 µm) and globose under the microscope.
  It grows on various broad leaved trees, especially ash where it causes
  a spongy, white heart-wood rot. The flesh contains hyphae with thick,
  brown walls.

  _Illustrations_: LH 63; WD 96¹.

[Illustration: Plate 45. Woody fungi--annual polypores]


~Phaeolus schweinitzii~ (Fries) Patouillard

  Cap: 100-300 mm, bracket-shaped or tub-shaped, dark brown with a
  knobbly, velvety, roughened and grooved surface; margin at first
  golden yellow.

  Stem: absent or short, thick and brown.

  Tubes and pores: greenish yellow.

  Flesh: deep rust-brown.

  Spore-print: greenish yellow.

  Spores: medium sized, greenish under the microscope, ellipsoid and
  about 8 × 4 µm in size, (7-8 × 3-4 µm). This fungus is found on
  conifers or near conifer stumps where it is attached to the roots; it
  causes a brown cubical heart-wood rot; the flesh of the fruit-body is
  composed of only one type of hyphae.

  _Illustrations_: LH 67; NB 111³; WD 95¹.


~Meripilus giganteus~ (Fries) Karsten

  Giant polypore

  Cap: 75-100 mm, or even up to 200 mm wide, grouped and forming a tuft
  of caps up to 750 mm across. The individual caps are fan-shaped,
  pliable, rather thin and yellow-brown to snuff-brown with their
  margins wavy and cream colour or yellowish.

  Stem: replaced by a united mass of caps.

  Tubes, pores and flesh: white and very soft, but becoming black on
  bruising.

  Spores: small, pip-shaped, hyaline under the microscope and 5-6 × 4-5
  µm. This fungus is a common sight forming masses at the base of
  broad-leaved trees; it is common on beech. It is a soft, fibrous
  polypore as a result of the lack in the flesh of thick-walled
  specialised hyphae.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 277; LH 73; NB 129⁴; WD 93¹.

  The spores of all the annual polypores described above do not blue
  when placed in solutions containing iodine.


~Coriolus versicolor~ (Fries) Quélet

  Many zoned polypore

  _Cap_: 25-60 mm. _Stem_: absent.

  _Description_: Plate 46.

  Cap: semi-circular, flattened, thin, tough and flexible when fresh
  with the surface velvety and marked with smoother, paler concentric
  zones giving a pattern of yellow-brown, grey or darker greenish grey
  zones; the margin is thin and is the palest of the zones and may be
  wavy or lobed.

  Tubes: white with small, round and rough-edged to angular white or
  cream-coloured pores which become yellowish with age.

  Flesh: white, tough and continuous with the tube tissue and so not
  allowing one to detect any difference between the tissues.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium sized, oblong and hyaline under the microscope, and 6-8
  × 2-3 µm; not blueing in solutions containing iodine.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Very common on stumps, trunks and fallen
  branches of various trees, especially beech; it is to be found
  throughout the year.

  _General Information_: It is often associated with nodulose masses of
  fungal tissue which are covered in small poroid areas and are very
  confusing when found by the beginner; they are simply growth-forms of
  _Coriolus versicolor_; such forms are frequently found on old
  house-timbers exposed to the weather, particularly window frames where
  it forms a distinct rot. Its flesh consists of thin-walled hyphae and
  binding hyphae as in _Polyporus squamosus_ as well as an additional
  thick-walled type called skeletal hyphae. It would appear that several
  polypores are capable of producing the amorphous growths mentioned
  above, some of which contain hyphal fragments called conidia.

  The bands of colour on the cap of the ‘many zoned polypore’ are
  retained after drying and from a group of fruit-bodies the most
  attractively zoned can be selected, mounted on small pieces of wood or
  cardboard and fitted at the back with a pin. Such preparations make
  very attractive brooches and have been used even by modern designers
  to contrast with their fashion creations.

  There are many pale tubed polypores growing on wood. _Daedalea
  quercina_ Fries ‘Mazegill’, grows on oak and has irregular maze-like
  pores; _Lenzites betulina_ (Fries) Fries, grows on birch, has tough
  plates which resemble the gills of an agaric. _Datronia mollis_
  (Fries) Donk forms thick spreading resupinate patches on beech,
  sometimes with irregular dark brown caps formed by the upturned
  margin. Several species of _Tyromyces_ occur in Britain and are
  characterised by their white pores and tubes and the white or
  pale-coloured caps. _Bjerkandera adusta_ (Fries) Karsten has a grey
  pore-surface and is also frequently found on beech.

  _Illustrations_: F 44a; LH 69; NB 117³; WD 51².


~Ganoderma europaeum~ Steyaert

  Common ganoderma

  _Cap_: 100-350 mm. _Stem_: absent.

  _Description_: Plate 47.

  Cap: bracket-shaped, rather flat at margin but humpy and irregular
  about the middle, frequently concentrically zoned, smooth and only
  slightly shiny; its margin is whitish or pale greyish.

  Tubes: red-brown or cinnamon-brown, obscurely layered and with small,
  white pores flushed with pale cinnamon-brown, but deep red-brown when
  rubbed or with age.

  Flesh: with a fragrant smell, deep red brown and felty-fibrous.

  Spore-print: dark cinnamon-brown.

  Spores: long, oval with truncate apex, smooth, but reticulate on the
  inner surface of the inner wall giving the spores a patterned
  appearance when seen under the microscope; 10-11 × 6-7 µm in size.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This fungus is common on various trees,
  especially beech and can be found throughout the year.

  _General Information_: This common _Ganoderma_ is perennial and
  distinguished from other polypore groups by the complex spores. _G.
  applanatum_ (Fries) Karsten is closely related, but differs in the
  thinner fruit-body with a thin margin, and the pale cinnamon-brown
  flesh; the flesh of both species contains thick-walled binding and
  strengthening hyphae as well as the generative hyphae.

  So sensitive are the pores to bruising that if a drawing or writing is
  executed on the lower surface with a pin, needle or similar sharp
  instrument and the fungus dried, the red-brown lines produced are
  retained and the pattern preserved. Several fungus paintings prepared
  in this way were made in the early part of the century, many beautiful
  ones having originated in the eastern part of North America.

[Illustration: Plate 46. Woody fungi: Spores white and borne within
tubes or on thickened plates]

  _Fomes fomentarius_ whose important characters are described below has
  frequently been confused with _Ganoderma europaeum_. It is common
  growing on birch in Scotland, but is less frequent south of Perth, and
  then grows probably more frequently on beech which is similar to the
  pattern found on the continent of Europe. However, it has grown in
  former periods in England on birch, for it was found commonly amongst
  birch timbers in an excavation of an early Mesolithic lake side
  village near Scarborough, Yorkshire.

  _Illustrations_: NB 125³; WD 160².


Some perennial polypores. Plate 48.


~Fomes fomentarius~ (Fries) Kickx

  Tinder fungus

  Cap: 90-300 mm, hoof-shaped, thick, broadly attached to the substrate,
  zoned with yellow-brown and shades of grey; its margin is blunt and
  fawn or pale brownish.

  Tubes: layered, cinnamon-brown with pale cinnamon pores with a whitish
  bloom.

  Flesh: cinnamon-brown or buff and woolly.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: elongate, ellipsoid, very long, hyaline under the microscope,
  15-18 × 5-6 µm, and not ornamented. The flesh contains both thick- and
  thin-walled hyphae. It grows on birch and less frequently on beech.
  The flesh has been used in dentistry, in manufacturing fancy articles,
  such as mats, and was the basis of the tinder used in flint-boxes.

  _Illustrations_: LH 65; NB 117¹; WD 100¹.


  ~Phellinus igniarius~ (Fries) Quélet ‘Willow Fomes’, grows on willows
  and causes their heart-rot. It is a rust-brown, woody fungus with a
  hard crust and brown tubes and flesh. The spore-print is white and
  composed of small, spherical, hyaline spores, 5-6 µm in diameter. The
  flesh contains thin- and thick-walled hyphae.

  _Illustrations_: LH 63; WD 99³.

[Illustration: Plate 47. Woody Fungi: Spores brown and borne within
tubes--fruit-body perennial]


  ~Oxyporus populinus~ (Fries) Donk, grows on various sorts of
  broad-leaved trees, particularly poplars and often becomes covered in
  mosses and algae. It has a pale buff or cream-coloured cap, white
  flesh, pores, tubes and spores.

  _Illustrations_: LH 67.


  ~Cryptoderma pini~ (Fries) Imaz, grows on conifers often several feet
  above the ground. It has a woody, deeply cracked upper surface, dark
  red-brown flesh, tubes and pores. Its spores are small, broadly
  ellipsoid and brown.


~Heterobasidion annosum~ (Fries) Brefeld

  Root fomes

  Variable, sometimes possessing a cap, sometimes resupinate except for
  the upturned margin, flattened or shell-shaped, red-brown to blackish
  at the centre but pale at the margin, which when seen from below is
  always white. The tubes are in layers and like the pores, flesh and
  spore-print are white. The spores are broadly ellipsoid, small,
  smooth, hyaline and 4-5 × 4 µm. The flesh is fairly tough as it
  contains both generative hyphae and skeletal hyphae. It is frequent on
  the roots and lower parts of stems of many trees and shrubs causing a
  rapid heart-rot of conifers and extensive damage to young trees.

  _Illustrations_: LH 67; NB 111¹; WD 98¹.

  The spores of all the perennial polypores described above do not blue
  when placed in solutions containing iodine.

[Illustration: Plate 48. Woody fungi: Spores borne within
tubes--perennial polypores]


~Schizophyllum commune~ Fries

  Split-gill fungus

  _Cap_: 10-25 mm. _Stem_: width 2-4 mm; length 2-4 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: greyish fawn becoming whitish when dry, fan or kidney-shaped,
  often lobed and covered in close-set hairs and with incurved margin.

  Stem: absent or the cap simply narrows into a stem-like bump.

  Gills: replaced by a series of grey-brown plates which when dry appear
  as if to split longitudinally and their edges roll back.

  Flesh: brownish but drying whitish.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium sized, oblong, hyaline under the microscope, not
  blueing in solutions containing iodine and 6-7 × 2-5 µm in size.

  Facial and marginal cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Grows on fallen branches, trunks, dead
  wood, etc.

  _General Information_: Easily recognised by the ‘gills’ radiating from
  a point and becoming ‘split’ when dry. Specimens of _Schizophyllum_
  sealed by A. H. R. Buller in a tube in 1911 have been shown on
  remoistening to unroll their gills and shed variable spores, after 52½
  years--probably a world record! The split-gill is a rather unique
  British fungus which appears to be much more closely related to the
  polypores than to the agarics--although it has for a long time been
  associated with the Oyster mushroom (p. 74). In fact, the splitting
  gills are two adjacent shallow dishes with spores produced on their
  inner surfaces. The cups separate on drying and therefore only
  superficially resemble gills splitting down the centre.

  Another fungus which can also be associated with the idea of cups is
  _Fistulina hepatica_ Fries ‘the Beef-steak fungus’. This fungus is a
  polypore in the widest sense. It may grow up to 250 mm wide and is
  reddish-brown or liver-coloured with reddish tubes and pale
  flesh-coloured pores; the tubes although free are aggregated together
  and can be easily separated individually with the fingers. This fungus
  is edible although very strong in taste, it produces a serious decay
  of oaks.

  _Illustrations_: _S. commune_--LH 105; NB 125⁶; WD 69³. _F.
  hepatica_--F 43³ (lower figure); Hvass 278; LH 75; NB 129²; WD 101⁴.

[Illustration: Plate 49. Woody fungi: Spores white and borne on
split-‘gills’]


(b) Destroyers of timber in buildings


~Serpula lacrymans~ (Fries) Karsten

  Dry-rot fungus

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: usually widely spreading, but sometimes forming a distinct
  bracket with the upper surface silvery or smokey grey, flushed with
  lilac or rose or yellowish.

  Stem: absent and replaced by a series of dirty white or greyish
  mycelial threads or strands which can be traced up to 100 mm over the
  substrate.

  Flesh: thin, dirty yellowish and composed of only one type of hypha.

  Spores: borne in shallow pores which are part of a complicated network
  of rust-brown folds and ridges.

  Spore-print: rust-brown.

  Spores: medium sized, golden yellow, thick-walled and broadly
  ellipsoid, and 8-10 × 5-6 µm in size.

  Cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: On worked wood in buildings and less
  commonly in timber-yards. It can be found throughout the year.

  _General Information_: This fungus forms fan-like structures and
  strands of mycelium which pass along beams and joists and through
  plaster. Where there is a bad case of dry-rot, the room or building
  will have an unpleasant musty smell and when actually growing the
  fungus exudes droplets of water on the mycelium and fruit-body, i.e.
  weeping, hence the name ‘lacrymans’--weepy. It is a very important and
  destructive agent causing damage to floors and skirting boards, to
  joists and beams. It is a frequent pest of old houses and therefore of
  many of our cities. This fungus does not appear to have been found in
  the wild in Europe, but there is a record from the Himalayas. There
  are, however, very closely related species found on soil or
  wood-detritus. The Dry-rot fungus darkens the wood and produces a rot
  which makes the wood crack into small cubes or rectangular blocks.

  This fungus was formerly placed in _Merulius_, but this genus should
  be retained for hyaline-spored fungi, e.g. _M. tremellosus_ Fries, a
  species which grows even in winter on stumps of various trees in our
  woods.

  _Illustrations_: LH 53; WD 103³.

[Illustration: Plate 50. Dry-rot fungi--leathery and tough spores borne
in shallow irregular pores]


~Coniophora puteana~ (Fries) Karsten

  Cellar or Wet-rot fungus

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: variable in size, resupinate, composed of one type of
  hypha only and with a sterile whitish cream or yellow margin.

  Spore-bearing tissue: an irregularly wrinkled or humpy, yellowish
  surface which then becomes olive-green or bronze-colour.

  Spore-print: olivaceous brown.

  Spores: olive-brown under the microscope, smooth, ellipsoid,
  thick-walled and 12-14 × 8-9 µm in size.

  Cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This fungus causes wet-rot in houses, but
  may also be found on stumps and fallen trunks in woodland.

  _General Information_: The fungus causes a discolouration of worked
  timber and induces longitudinal cracking with only a few lateral
  hair-like cracks unlike timber attacked by the dry-rot fungus (see p.
  154).

  _Illustrations_: WD 103⁵.


~Fibuloporia vaillantii~ (Fries) Bondarsev & Singer

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: a resupinate layer of pores with cream-coloured or white
  sterile radiating margin.

  Spore-bearing tissue: distributed within a series of small often
  shallow, white or ivory tubes.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: smooth, hyaline under the microscope, oblong 5-7 × 3-4 µm.

  Cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: The dry-rot of houses, particularly in
  roof-systems.

  _General Information_: _Fibuloporia vaillantii_ is recognised by the
  white, resupinate pore-surface and fairly tough nature due to the
  presence of strengthening hyphae. Just as the genus _Polyporus_ was
  found to be composed of several quite different elements (see pp.
  140-44) and has since been split up into a number of different genera,
  the genus _Poria_ has also been fragmented; one of the constituent
  genera is _Fibuloporia_. _Amyloporia xantha_ (Fries) Bondarsev &
  Singer differs in having amyloid tissue and cystidia encrusted with
  crystals. The flesh contains both simple hyphae and thickened
  structural hyphae. It is yet another member of the large old unwieldy
  genus _Poria_ and causes decay of worked wood, particularly the
  timbers of benching and staging in greenhouses. _A. xantha_ has a
  sulphur-yellow pore-surface and is rather cheesy when handled.

[Illustration: Plate 51. Wet and Dry-rot fungi--leathery and tough and
spores borne within shallow pores or on an uneven surface]


(c) Colonisers of cones


~Auriscalpium vulgare~ S. F. Gray

  Ear-pick fungus

  _Cap_: 8-12 mm. _Stem_: width 4-6 mm; length 40-75 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: kidney-shaped or semicircular, thin, date- or umber-brown, hairy,
  but paler towards the margin.

  Stem: erect, slender, hairy, particularly at the base, and attached at
  the side of the cap (excentric).

  Gills: replaced by flesh-coloured, then greyish brown spines.

  Flesh: brown.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: small, hyaline, minutely spiny, spherical, 4-5 µm in diameter,
  and becoming blue-grey in solutions containing iodine.

  Cystidia: flask-shaped with oily contents.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This fungus is always found on fallen
  pine-cones and occurs from early summer to autumn.

  _General Information_: The ear-pick fungus is easily recognised by the
  slender, elegant habit, excentrically placed cap, substrate preference
  and dark colours. It cannot be confused with any other fungus.
  Recently it has been shown that the ‘agaric’ _Lentinellus cochleatus_
  (Fries) Karsten (p. 76) is more closely related to _Auriscalpium_ than
  this fungus is to other spine-bearing forms and _Lentinellus_ is to
  the other agarics. Both fungi possess thick-walled cells in the flesh
  and oil-containing hyphae; they are placed in the family
  _Auriscalpiaceae_.

  Another laterally stemmed Hedgehog fungus differs in possessing
  distinctly gelatinised teeth and preference for conifer wood and not
  cones. Examination of the basidia of this fungus shows that it is more
  closely related to the jelly-fungi, _Exidia_ and _Tremella_ (p. 184)
  than to Hedgehog fungi such as _Auriscalpium_ or _Hyndum repandum_
  Fries (p. 160). This false nature is reflected in the name of the
  genus to which it belongs, _Pseudohydnum_, and the very gelatinous
  texture in the specific name ‘_gelatinosum_’: the fungus is
  _Pseudohydnum gelatinosum_, or as it used to be called _Tremellodon
  gelatinosum_.

  _Illustrations_: Auriscalpium vulgare--WD 103⁶. Pseudohydnum
  gelatinosum--WD 105⁹.

[Illustration: Plate 52. Tough or leathery fungi: Spores white and borne
on spines--Ear pick fungus]


(d) Terrestrial forms


~Hydnum repandum~ Fries

  Wood-hedgehog

  _Cap_: 50-75 mm width. _Stem_: width 10-17 mm; length 45-65 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: rather thick, fleshy, pinkish buff or tan, paler at its incurved
  and often lobed margin.

  Stem: short, stout and powdered with white roughenings and often
  attached to the cap to one side of the centre.

  Gills: replaced by awl-shaped, pinkish buff spines which are unequal
  in length and run down the top of the stem.

  Flesh: white, firm and with a pleasant smell.

  Spore-print: whitish.

  Spores: medium sized, hyaline under the microscope, smooth, broadly
  ellipsoid, 7 × 6-7 µm, and not becoming bluish grey in solutions
  containing iodine.

  Cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: The ‘wood-hedgehog’ grows on the ground in
  mixed woods and is easily recognised by its colour and fleshy texture.

  _General Information_: The closely related, smaller, red-brown species
  _H. rufescens_ Persoon grows with conifers. _Hydnum_ was formerly a
  genus which contained several entities, now not considered closely
  related. Thus the following genera have been delimited in addition to
  those related to _Hydnum repandum_ and _H. rufescens_, and
  _Auriscalpium_ described on p. 158.

  _Sarcodon_: Fruit-body fleshy: spores brown and ornamented with
  irregular bumps, e.g. _S. imbricatum_ (Fries) Karsten.

  _Phellodon_: Fruit-body tough and fibrous: spores white and ornamented
  with small spines, e.g. _P. niger_ (Fries) Karsten.

  _Hydnellum_: Fruit-body tough and fibrous: spores brown and ornamented
  with irregular bumps and bosses, e.g. _H. scrobiculatum_ (Secretan)
  Karsten.

  _Bankera_: Fruit-body fleshy: spores white and ornamented with small
  spines, e.g. _B. fuliginoalbum_ (Fries) Pouzar.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 280; LH 61; NB 153³; WD 53⁴; Z 61.

[Illustration: Plate 53. Tough or leathery fungi: Spores whitish and
borne on spines]


(ii) Chanterelles and relatives


~Cantharellus cibarius~ Fries

  Chanterelle

  _Cap_: 30-100 mm. _Stem_: width 15-25 mm; length 30-70 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: convex then flattened, irregularly wavy, more or less top-shaped,
  depressed and smooth or slightly roughened at centre, egg-yellow or
  lemon-chrome with flush of orange and with the margin incurved at
  first.

  Stem: short, stout, tapered downwards, fleshy and similarly coloured
  to the cap.

  Gills: replaced by irregularly branched yellow folds which may form a
  network near the margin and at the apex of the stem over which the
  folds run down irregularly (decurrent).

  Flesh: with pleasant, fruity smell, yellow but paler on drying.

  Spore-print: pale cream-colour.

  Spores: medium sized, ellipsoid, thin-walled, smooth, 8-10 × 5-6 µm in
  size and not becoming bluish grey in solutions containing iodine.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  Basidia: 2-8 spored.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Very common in troops in deciduous woods
  especially those with beech and oak.

  _General Information_: Easily recognised by its folds and absence of
  true gills beneath the cap and the overall yellow colour. This fungus
  is the edible chanterelle of the continental market, where it is
  considered of very high quality; it can be purchased in this country
  in tins. _C. friesii_ Quélet is of a bright apricot colour with
  lilaceous or rose-coloured flesh. The ‘false chanterelle’
  _Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca_ (Fries) Maire already discussed (see p.
  106) has true gills and is reddish orange in colour.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 182; LH 59; NB 123²; WD 83¹.

[Illustration: Plate 54. Fleshy but firm fungi: Spores pale-coloured and
borne on irregular folds (False gills)]


~Craterellus cornucopioides~ (Fries) Persoon

  Horn of plenty

  _Cap_: 22-80 mm. _Stem_: width 15-25 mm; length 25-80 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: funnel-shaped, membranous to leathery, but limp, dark brown or
  almost black in wet weather, but on drying becoming dull brown or
  sepia, slightly scaly and with irregularly wavy margin.

  Stem: short, blackish and hollow.

  Gills: absent, replaced by a smooth to irregularly wrinkled, ash-grey
  surface.

  Flesh: sepia but drying out greyish ochre.

  Spore-print: cream-colour.

  Spores: medium sized, hyaline under the microscope, ellipsoid, smooth,
  10-11 × 6-7 µm in size and not blueing in solutions containing iodine.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  Basidia: usually 2-spored.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Often in very large troops in woods,
  especially under beech.

  _General Information_: This fungus is recognised by the peculiar shape
  and dull colours which conceal it so well amongst the dead leaves and
  woodland debris; in the shade of the tree-canopy it is easily
  overlooked. _Craterellus sinuosus_ (Fries) Fries is a much smaller
  species with dirty ochraceous fertile surface and brownish grey cap
  and stem.

  ‘Cornucopioides’ means like (oides) a horn of plenty, a familiar
  object in mediaeval paintings as part of heathen festivities full and
  overflowing either with fruit or wine, or both!

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 186; LH 59; NB 123¹; WD 83⁴.

[Illustration: Plate 55. Fleshy but leathery fungi: Spores pale-coloured
and borne on irregular wrinkles]


(iii) Fairy-club fungi


~Clavulina rugosa~ (Fries) Schroeter

  Wrinkled club

  _Cap_: absent. _Fruit-body_: length 50-100 mm; width 7-13 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: club-shaped, simple with blunt apex or irregular blunt
  branches, white or dirty cream colour, often thickened upwards and
  marked with longitudinal wrinkles or grooves and the whole surface of
  the club bearing spores.

  Stem: absent or extremely short.

  Flesh: white.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spore: medium sized, broadly ellipsoid to subglobose, hyaline under
  the microscope and not turning bluish grey in iodine solutions, 9-10 ×
  7-8 µm in size.

  Cystidia: absent.

  Basidia: 2-spored.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Frequent on the ground in woods,
  especially in the shade of beech trees or in conifer plantations.

  _General Information_: Two very closely related species are to be
  found in similar localities and are equally as common; they are _C.
  cristata_ (Fries) Schroeter with strongly branched white fruit-body,
  each branch ending in pinkish or lavender-white, divided, sharply
  pointed branchlets and _C. cinerea_ (Fries) Schroeter with irregular
  greyish or dark grey branches with a flush of violaceous.

  These three species are very closely related; in fact so many
  intermediates between the extreme morphological forms are known that
  some authorities have considered them simply forms of a single
  species. All these species lack cystidia.

  rugosa--wrinkled, referring to the spore-bearing surface.

  cristata--crested, referring to the branchlets.

  cinerea--ash-grey, referring to the colour.

  All these species are often found blackened by the growth of the
  microscopic fungus, _Helminthosphaeria clavariae_ (Tulasne) Fuckel.

  _Illustrations_: _C. rugosa_--LH 55; WD 104⁵. _C. cristata_--LH 55; NB
  153⁵; WD 104². _C. cinerea_--WD 104¹.

[Illustration: Plate 56. Fleshy but firm fungi: Spores pale-coloured and
borne on club-shaped fruit-bodies]


~Clavaria vermicularis~ Fries

  White spindles

  _Cap_: absent. _Fruit-body_: width 6-10 mm; length 50-85 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 56.

  Simple or very rarely branched, but not forked below the soil-level,
  densely tufted, spindle-shaped, pure white with sharp, often slightly
  brownish, tips, when old it is wavy, often twisted, compressed and
  fragile.

  Stem: absent.

  Flesh: whitish.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: small, pip-shaped, smooth, hyaline under the microscope, 4-5 ×
  3 µm in size, and not becoming bluish grey in iodine solutions.

  Cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common in autumn amongst grass in fields,
  less frequent in woods.

  _General Information_: _Clavulinopsis fusiformis_ (Fries) Corner,
  ‘Golden spindles’ is similar to _C. vermicularis_, but forms dense
  tufts of canary-yellow, very fragile clubs joined in 2’s or 3’s below
  the soil level; the spores are also slightly different, being almost
  globose, hyaline under the microscope and 5-7 µm in diameter.

  _Clavaria fumosa_ Fries is similar to _C. vermicularis_ and forms
  tufts of very fragile mouse-grey clubs with brownish tips; it produces
  elongate ellipsoid spores measuring 6-8 × 3-4 µm which are hyaline
  under the microscope. _C. vermicularis_ and _C. fumosa_ differ from
  _Clavulinopsis_ in hyphal construction, but the differences are rather
  difficult to demonstrate to the beginner. _Clavulinopsis helvola_
  favours similar habits to _C. fusiformis_ and although yellow in
  colour differs in the more orange-yellow colouration, but more
  particularly in the spores being rounded, 5-6 µm in diameter with
  large angular spines.

  The earth-tongues, i.e. members of the family _Geoglossaceae_ which
  are also found in pastures belong to an unrelated group of fungi, the
  Ascomycetes. If the clubs are crushed and examined under the
  microscope rows of sacs (asci) containing long thread-like ascospores
  are found--no basidia are to be seen.

  _Illustrations_: _Clav. fusiformis_--WD 104⁹. _C. vermicularis_--WD
  104¹⁰. _C. fumosa_--Hvass 303; WD 104¹¹. _Clav. helvola_--Hvass 300;
  WD 105¹.

[Illustration: Plate 57. Club-shaped and coral fungi]


~Clavulinopsis corniculata~ (Fries), Corner (p. 171).

  _Cap_: absent. _Fruit-body_: complex; width 20-30 mm; length 20-40 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 57.

  Fruit-body: shape depending on the length of grass in which it grows
  but always branching strongly from its base, composed of a dense
  compact tuft of egg-yellow or orange-tawny branches which are either
  irregular or of equal length and so they form a flattened top to the
  fruit-body complex, the branchlets are slender, forked 2- or 3-times,
  with their apices narrowed or curved.

  Stem: very downy at the base.

  Flesh: pale yellow.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium sized, hyaline under the microscope, smooth, spherical
  and 5-7 µm in diameter, not becoming bluish grey in iodine solutions.

  Cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common amongst grass in fields or on
  grassy path sides in woodland.

  _General Information_: _Clavulinopsis corniculata_ is recognised by
  the branched habit and the smooth spores; _Ramaria ochraceo-virens_ is
  of similar form, but has an overall duller colour and turns green on
  bruising, grows in pinewoods and has finely roughened brownish spores.
  _Calocera viscosa_ also has an erect, bright golden or orange-yellow
  fruit-body which becomes more orange on drying. It is repeatedly
  branched and usually has a long, tough-rooting base. However, the
  spore-print is dirty yellowish and the fruit-body, which grows on
  coniferous wood, is viscid and elastic, a character reflected in the
  name ‘viscosa’. Microscopically the basidium of _Calocera_ is shaped
  like a tuning-fork and is not clavate as in _Clavulinopsis
  corniculata_. It appears to be more related to the jelly-fungi (see p.
  180).

  _Illustrations_: _Clavulinopsis corniculata_--LH 55; NB 6; WD 104³.
  _Calocera viscosa_--Hvass 304; LH 225; NB 149³; WD 107⁸.


~Typhula erythropus~ Fries.

  _Cap_: absent. _Fruit-body_ up to 20 mm high.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: upper fertile portion club-shaped and not more than half
  the length, white, surmounting a reddish brown, thread-like, often
  wavy or twisted stem which is attached at its base to an ellipsoid
  bead-like structure, called a sclerotium.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: oblong, smooth, hyaline under the microscope, 6-7 × 2 µm in
  size and not becoming bluish grey in iodine solutions.

  Cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Not uncommon on dead leaves and twigs or
  dead herbaceous stems.


~Pistillaria micans~ Fries.

  _Cap_: absent. _Fruit-body_: up to 10 mm high.

  _Description_:

  Club-shaped or oblong, rose-pink hardly differentiated from the
  similarly coloured stem, and arising at most from a small pad of
  filaments.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: broadly ellipsoid to pip-shaped, smooth, hyaline under the
  microscope, about 10 × 6 µm (8-11 × 5-7 µm) in size and not becoming
  bluish grey in iodine solutions.

  Cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Not uncommon on dead herbaceous stems and
  leaves, especially those in damp places.

  _Illustrations_: _T. erythropus_ WD 105¹⁰. _P. micans_ WD 105⁷.


General notes on the club-fungi

Early mycologists believed that the club-shaped nature of the fruit-body
was important in the classification of these fungi. Thus the Earth
Tongues (_Geoglossum_, see Plate 57), the Stag’s horn fungi and
relatives (_Xylosphaera_ see p. 204), both Ascomycete groups, the
Dacrymycetales (a group of jelly-fungi, see p. 180) and the true
fairy-clubs were all classified together. It was the ‘Father of
Mycology’, the Swede, Elias Fries, who in 1821, as in many other groups
of fungi, made an attempt to make some sense of the chaos. By very
careful observations, and what is so amazing without using a microscope,
he was able to separate the tough stemmed and gelatinous stemmed groups
from the more slender or coral-like ones. Fries was a very keen observer
and noticed features which many modern authorities miss in the field
because they rely too heavily on the microscope. Fries’ system was used
almost unchanged until the second half of this century; its beauty was
its simplicity in that it joined together in one group all those fungi
with simple basidia and the spore-bearing tissue distributed all around
a simple club or around the branches of a complex fruit-body resembling
a coral. However, by a careful examination of the microscopic
structures, such as the spores and hyphae and the development of the
fruit-body, it has been found necessary to separate these fungi still
further. The ecology of the club-fungi has assisted in an understanding
of these proposed divisions.

The larger many branched clavarias, more correctly placed in the genus
_Ramaria_, are to be found on bare soil in woodlands and plantations;
_R. ochraceo-virens_ is common in conifer plantations and can be
recognised by the long ornamented spores, which characterise this group
of fungi, and the fact that the sandy-coloured fruit-body becomes dark
olive-green on bruising (see p. 170).

_Clavariadelphus pistillaris_ is the largest of our simple club-fungi;
it may grow up to 200 mm high and 50 mm wide. This fungus has a wrinkled
outer surface and sometimes the apex of the club becomes flattened and
lacks basidia; this suggests a possible relationship, perhaps
evolutionary, to the primitive chanterelles (see p. 162)--also woodland
fungi. _Clavulina_, a complex group of dull or whitish, branched
fruit-bodies, has been described earlier and the genus is characterised
by the large spores and 2-spored basidia; they are woodland fungi also.

The grassland species are often simple in structure belonging in the
main to the genus _Clavulinopsis_ (see p. 170) and the now much reduced
genus _Clavaria_ (see p. 168). Although really complex, some of these
species of _Clavulinopsis_ are branched only below the soil level and
thus appear as single clubs amongst the grass. Perhaps the single club
has evolved especially to grow amongst blades of grass. _C.
corniculata_, however, is well branched and the head is tight and
compact and often flattened close to the ground. The same fungus in
woodland is more open and because of this it was thought to be a
different species to the grassland form. It is the simple club which
dominates the form of those species which grow on herbaceous debris and
grass-stems; indeed several species of _Typhula_ cause diseases of grass
particularly those of lawns where they have suffered damage because of
cold or long periods under the snow. Some of these small fungi produce a
small hard mass of fungal tissue about the size of a lupin seed (called
a sclerotium). This is a resting body from which the club-shaped almost
filament-like fruit-body later develops.


~Thelephora terrestris~ Fries

  Earth-fan

  _Cap_: absent. _Fruit-body_: width 20-40 mm; height 30-50 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: erect, fan-shaped or effused with upturned margin, tough
  but thin and fibrous, chocolate-brown or cocoa-coloured, scaly from
  radiating fibrils and with fringed, pale buff or wine-coloured margin.

  Gills: absent and replaced by a wrinkled or irregularly granular, dark
  lilaceous grey or cocoa-coloured surface.

  Flesh: brown and thin.

  Spore-print: purplish brown.

  Spores: medium sized, dark brown under the microscope, warted-angular
  and 8-9 × 6-7 µm in size.

  Cystidia: absent but basidia often filled with brown contents.

  Basidia: 2-4 spored.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Found on the ground in woods, especially
  pine woods; also on heathland growing up vegetation and incorporating
  it into the fruit-body’s shape.

  _General Information_: There is some evidence to suggest that this
  fungus can form mycorrhiza with pine trees under certain conditions.

  Although it may be easily passed over because it is perfectly
  camouflaged it is quite easy to recognise when collected. _T. palmata_
  (Bulliard) Patouillard, is a bigger, less frequently seen species more
  coral-like in shape; it also grows in pine woods. When the fruit-body
  of _T. terrestris_ spreads over the soil or plant debris it resembles
  other members of the family to which it belongs, i.e.
  _Thelephoraceae_; species of _Tomentella_. They also have warty
  angular spores, purplish brown colours, and wrinkled or puckered
  spore-bearing surfaces. _Tomentella_ spp., however, are resupinate or
  encrusting and so do not form caps, even at the margin of the
  fruit-body. _Tomentella_ is one of the many genera which were classed
  collectively as resupinate fungi because they lack a cap and form
  crusts. This group ‘the resupinates’ consists of a whole series of
  quite unrelated fungi.

  _Illustrations_: LH 53; NB 47⁸.

[Illustration: Plate 58. Club and Fan-shaped fungi]


(iv) Resupinate fungi

When mycologists talk generally about ‘resupinates’ they are referring
to a whole group of Basidiomycetes whose spore-bearing layer is exposed,
the cap highly reduced or completely lacking, and the fungus adhering to
the surface of the substrate which may be soil, wood, grasses, etc., at
the point which would have been the cap of an agaric. Probably members
of the group are the most commonly seen yet it is one of the most
commonly ignored groups of fungi--by naturalists and mycologists alike;
they form ‘white wash’ on old sticks, dark coloured discolourations on
trunks, etc. It is an entirely artificial group of many quite unrelated
elements united on the common factor of having either a reduced or
primitive fruit-body consisting only of a sheet of tissue. However,
these same fungi have a uniting factor in that they frequent the same
ecological sites, e.g. on muddy soil in bogs, under overhangs of banks
and stream sides, undersides of logs, trunks, branches and twigs, hidden
in cracks of old stumps or spreading over carpets of conifer needles or
dead leaves and sedges.

By studying the anatomy of the fruit-body and the characters of the
spores certain relationships can be found which relate many of these
fungi to several other groups of fungi we have dealt with in earlier
chapters.

It is only possible to mention here the group as a whole for all the
species really require very careful examination, often necessitating
several hours of microscope work. They should be left by the beginner
until more experience is obtained and advice of an expert easily
available.

Although the group mainly contains saprophytes, a few are parasitic.
‘Silver-leaf disease’ of almonds and fruit trees is caused by _Stereum
(chondrostereum) purpureum_ (Persoon) Fries; it has a purple fruiting
surface, and greyish upper surface when ever this is formed at the
margin.

There are several species of _Stereum_ in Britain, three species of
which when handled in the fresh state stain red: _S. sanguinolentum_ (A.
& S.) Fries, a pale coloured species on conifer wood, _S. rugosum_
(Pers.) Fries a similar coloured species on beech, birch and especially
hazel, and _S. gausapatum_ Fries an ochraceous yellow species on oak,
often forming a pocket rot of the timber. However, the commonest member
of the genus is an orange-tawny coloured species with a greyish buff,
hairy cap, _S. hirsutum_ (Willd) Fries. It grows on many trees of
broad-leaved wood and can be found wherever twigs, branches, trunks or
stumps have been lying out in the rain; it does not bleed.

[Illustration: Plate 59. Resupinate fungi]

Those species of resupinate fungi which resemble members of this genus,
i.e. those with a distinct tough, although poorly developed, cap, are
called stereoid.

‘Red thread disease’ of grass which often causes unsightly red patches
on lawns and school and corporation playing-fields is caused by
_Corticium fuciforme_ (Berkeley) Wakefield. Fungi belonging to this
genus produce fruit-bodies which ‘scramble’ over the substrate; for
example, if one searches old elder trees throughout the year one will
certainly find a ‘white wash’ fungus of this type, _Hyphodontia sambuci_
(Pers.) J. Eriksson. Fungi with this type of fruit-body are called
corticoid.

The two major types are illustrated along with some of the bizarre
microscopic structures one finds in the resupinates; such structures are
useful in classification and identification, and their beauty and
intricacy make up for the surprisingly simple fruit-body shape and
texture.




C. THE JELLY FUNGI


_Key to the major groups_

The jelly fungi or Hymenomycetous heterobasidiae is a complex group of
fungi and not only includes our common jelly fungi but many microscopic
forms some of which are parasitic. The group is divided into three main
divisions depending on the position of the cross-walls within the
basidium, or whether the basidium is in the shape of a tuning-fork. They
are probably not closely related one to another.

  =Auriculariales= (Basidia divided into cells by transverse walls)

  1. Fruit-body lacking a cap and more or less forming a gelatinous
     coating on plant-debris                            _Helicobasidium_

     Fruit-body with more or less distinct cap, gelatinous but tough   2

  2. Fruit-body ear-like or cup-shaped; upper surface with grey hairs
     and lower surface lilaceous brown or wine-coloured       _Hirneola_

     Fruit-body at first cup-shaped but then spreading; upper surface
     grey and hairy, and lower surface purplish.           _Auricularia_

  =Tremellales= (Basidia divided into cells by longitudinal walls)

  1. Fruit-body with distinct stem and spines on lower surface
                                                          _Pseudohydnum_

     Fruit-body lacking a well-developed stem, either reduced to a small
     lobe or entirely absent                                           2

  2. Fruit-body flattened or disc-shaped, often with warts or veins on
     the surface; spores more or less sausage-shaped            _Exidia_

     Fruit-body brain-like or with irregular bumps, sometimes lobed or
     irregular and encrusting                                          3

  3. Fruit-body brain-like or with bumps or bosses; spores rounded or
     ovoid                                                    _Tremella_

     Fruit-body encrusting woody or herbaceous material; spores
     ellipsoid                                                _Sebacina_

  =Dacrymycetales= (Basidia resembling the shape of a tuning-fork)

  1. Fruit-body club-shaped or coral-like                     _Calocera_

     Fruit-body top-shaped or with irregular bumps                     2

  2. Fruit-body top-shaped                                   _Femsjonia_

     Fruit-body cushion- or brain-like, or with irregular bumps
                                                            _Dacrymyces_


~Dacrymyces stillatus~ Nees ex Fries

  _Fruit-body_: 3-6 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: cushion or brain-like, often irregular, lacking any
  evidence of stem, yellow or orange, gelatinous, covered entirely by
  spore-bearing tissue.

  Spore-print: yellowish.

  Spores: long, cylindrical or oblong, and slightly curved and 12-15 ×
  5-6 µm in size; they characteristically have 2 to 4 cross-walls
  dividing the interior of the spore (see below).

  Cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common on all sorts of old wood,
  particularly on fence-posts, wooden railway-sleepers and other worked
  timber outside, e.g. sides of summer-houses and garden sheds. It is
  also found on twigs and branches in woods and copses.

  _General Information_: This fungus is found throughout the year, but
  it is much more obvious under damp conditions when it is strongly
  gelatinised and very soft; when dry it almost disappears. The tissue
  bearing the basidia (perfect state) is yellow, when orange there is a
  predominance of asexually produced spores called arthrospores
  (conidia).

  _D. deliquescens_ is only another name for the same fungus. There are
  several species of _Dacrymyces_ with which _D. stillatus_ can be
  confused, but can only be separated with certainty by using a
  microscope. The Coral-spot fungus, frequently found in gardens,
  produces gelatinous, pink protuberances on wood especially that of
  sycamore, and may easily be mistaken for species of _Dacrymyces_. It
  consists entirely of asexually produced spores (conidia) of the
  Ascomycete _Nectria cinnabarina_. The perfect state appears late in
  the year as grouped, small, blood-red flask-shaped fruit-bodies
  containing envelopes of spores. It is quite unrelated to _Dacrymyces_.

  ~Calocera viscosa~ (Fries) Fries described earlier (p. 170) is closely
  related to _Dacrymyces_. The much smaller, and probably equally as
  common, _Calocera cornea_ (Fries) Fries is simple, club-shaped and
  yellow, but darkens to become orange on drying. It grows up to 10 mm
  high and occurs on all sorts of wood; it is especially common on wet
  beech trunks. It approaches _Dacrymyces_ more than the much larger _C.
  viscosa_.

  _Illustrations_: _D. deliquescens_--LH 225; NB 149⁷; WD 107¹⁰. _C.
  cornea_--WD 107⁹.


~Hirneola auricula-judae~ (St Amans) Berkeley

  Jew’s ear

  _Fruit-body_: width 20-75 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: cup or ear-shaped, red-brown or deep wine-colour,
  gelatinous with its upper surface, velvety and clothed in greyish or
  olivaceous hairs.

  Spore-bearing layer: reddish or purplish brown, smooth or veined and
  translucent.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: very long, hyaline under the microscope, oblong, curved and
  narrowed towards their base, 16-18 × 6-8 µm in size.

  Cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: On dead branches of all kinds and
  particularly common throughout the year on elder.

  _General Information_: Easily recognised by the wine-coloured,
  cup-shaped or ear-shaped fruit-body; it is often called _Auricularia
  judae_ in many books. Its Latin name is reflected in the common
  name:--_auricula_ ear and _judae_, of a jew. This fungus is supposed
  to be a reappearance, as a warning to us all, of Judas, who on
  betrayal of Christ hung himself from an elder tree.


  ~Auricularia mesenterica~ (S. F. Gray) Persoon, ‘Tripe-fungus’, is
  bracket-shaped with a hairy upper surface and reddish purple or deep
  purple lower surface which when fresh has a greyish bloom due to the
  formation of the spores.

  There are several fungi in the group Auriculariales in Britain, but
  many of them are inconspicuous and are identified with difficulty
  except by the expert. _Sebacina incrustans_ (Fries) Tulasne is a
  common more obvious example of the resupinate forms. It grows as a
  cream or ivory-coloured, soft fruit-body encrusting twigs, leaves,
  grass and soil.

  _Illustrations_: LH 225; NB 149¹; WD 107¹.

[Illustration: Plate 60. Jelly fungi]


~Exidia glandulosa~ (St Amans) Fries

  Witch’s butter

  _Fruit-body_: width 15-50 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: sessile or shortly stalked, blackish, variable in shape,
  rounded, flattened, disc-shaped or convolute, gelatinous with its
  under surface tomentose and free from the substrate.

  Fruiting surface: uppermost, wavy and folded, and with numerous
  wart-like projections.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: long, hyaline, cylindrical, sausage-shaped and 12-15 × 5 µm in
  size.

  Cystidia: absent.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Frequent in crowded groups on stumps, logs
  and fallen branches of broad-leaved trees, especially those of ash;
  common throughout the year.

  _General Information_: _Tremella foliacea_ (S. F. Gray) Persoon and
  _Tremella mesenterica_ Hooker are similar but more convoluted with
  leaf-like lobes. The former is cinnamon brown and occurs on conifer
  wood and its spores are 7-9 × 5-7 µm, whilst the latter is bright
  golden yellow or orange-yellow and occurs on broad-leaved trees. _T.
  mesenterica_ has spores 7-8 × 5-6 µm, often accompanied or replaced by
  small, asexually produced spores.

  Glandulosa--means full of glands and refers to the glands of the upper
  surface of the Witch’s butter.

  The convoluted fruit-body of the _Tremella_ spp. is reflected in the
  word foliacea--leafy, and mesenterica--middle intestine. The last
  species is also often called the ‘Yellow brain-fungus’.

  _Illustrations_: _Exidia glandulosa_--LH 225; NB 149⁴; WD 107³.
  _Tremella mesenterica_--LH 225; NB 149⁵; WD 107⁶.

[Illustration: Plate 61. Jelly fungi]




D. THE STOMACH FUNGI


The Gasteromycetes are a complex mixture of higher fungi united in
virtue of their spores being enclosed in a fruit-body and not forcibly
ejected from the basidium; the group includes the puff-balls and their
relatives.


_Key to some groups_

  1. Fruit-body growing beneath the surface of the soil (hypogeous)
                 False truffles (including _Hymenogaster_, _Rhizopogon_)

     Fruit-body not growing beneath the soil-surface                   2

  2. Spores in a slimy mass on a specialised fruit-body arising from an
     egg-like structure               Stinkhorns (_Phallus_ & _Mutinus_)

     Spores powdery at maturity or in small capsules                   3

  3. Spores powdery at maturity and contained within the fruit-body    4

     Spores enclosed in a small capsule or group of capsules in a
     cup-like structure, resembling the eggs within the nest of a bird
                  Bird’s nest fungi (including _Crucibulum_ & _Cyathus_)

  4. Spores intermixed with threads within the fruit-body from which
     they are dispersed through a specialised pore at its apex
                  Puff-balls and Earth-stars (_Lycoperdon_ & _Geastrum_)

     Spores not mixed with threads within the fruit-body and not
     dispersed through special structure but through cracks as the
     fruit-body weathers                     Earth-Balls (_Scleroderma_)

The Gasteromycetes is an unnatural group of predominantly saprophytic
higher fungi many of which are extremely grotesque and strange in their
morphology. Instead of the spores being formed asymmetrically on the
basidium as is found in the agarics, the spores of members of this group
are usually more or less symmetrically attached to their sterigmata or
may even be seated directly (sessile) on the basidium. The whole group,
even if unnatural, can, however, be regarded under one heading as a
biological unit. Until something better is suggested and supported by
evidence the existence of this group is very convenient.

Usually the basidia project into cavities within the fruit-body in which
the spores themselves are released as the fruit-body gradually
matures--hence the name Gastero-mycetes: ‘stomach-fungi’. In a few more
advanced forms, the puff-balls of temperate countries, for instance, the
spores escape from these cavities through a pore or pores in the outer
wall of the fruit-body, and in the stinkhorns the spores are exposed as
a sticky mass because the smell of the material in which they are held
is attractive to flies. In forms which have subterranean (or hypogeous
p. 243) fruit-bodies there is no special opening and here the spores are
dispersed by insects and small mammals. In the bird’s nest fungi the
spores are enclosed in separate packets within a saucer or cup-like open
structure.

Recently it has been shown by examination of the microscopic structure
of the fruit-bodies and spores that certain genera of the Gasteromycetes
are more closely related to the agarics than many of them are between
themselves.

It is believed that some of the Gasteromycetes may have evolved from
more familiar fungi by adaptation to arid or semi-arid conditions.
Although this is not true for all the Gasteromycetes within this one
group of fungi, a whole series of methods of overcoming the
disadvantages connected with non-violent disposal of spores has evolved.
These methods include both changes in structure and ecology; only a few
have evolved a mycorrhizal relationship with higher plants.


~Lycoperdon pyriforme~ Persoon

  Stump puff-ball

  _Fruit-body_: width 20-50 mm; height 40-75 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: more or less pear-shaped, pale brownish often with a
  slight hump on the top, scurfy on the outside with tiny pointed
  granules which soon fall off or become rubbed off by abrasion,
  particularly after careless handling.

  Stem: consisting of rather small cells and connected at the base by
  long, white, branched cords of mycelium which permeate the substrate.

  Spore-mass: white at first then greenish yellow and finally
  olive-brown and formed around a sterile column.

  Spores: small, olive, minutely warted but appearing smooth under the
  student microscope; 4 µm in diameter and intermixed with long, olive
  coloured, branched hyphal threads 4-5 µm broad and of irregular wall
  thickness.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This puff-ball grows in huge clusters on
  stumps and logs, or can be traced to buried pieces of wood; it occurs
  from summer to late autumn.

  _General Information_: There are several species of _Lycoperdon_ in
  this country, some quite small and several rather infrequent. _L.
  pyriforme_ is the only one which grows on wood; ‘pyriforme’ means
  pear-shaped and is derived from the shape of the fruit-body.


  ~L. perlatum~ Persoon is also a common puff-ball; it is pestle-shaped
  or top-shaped, whitish or tan with minutely roughened, globose spores
  measuring 4 µm in diameter. The fruit-body is covered in a mixture of
  large and small, fragile spines which leave a network when rubbed off.
  It grows in woods and on heaths.


  ~L. foetidum~ Bonorden is similar to _L. perlatum_, but the spines are
  umber or vandyke-brown; it also grows both in woods and upland
  pastures, particularly the latter.

  _Illustrations_: _L. pyriforme_--Hvass 316; LH 219; NB 155³; WD 109³.
  _L. perlatum_--Hvass 315; LH 217; NB 155²; WD 110².

[Illustration: Plate 62. Puff-balls]


~Langermannia gigantea~ (Persoon) Rostkovius

  Giant puff-ball

  _Fruit-body_: diameter 300-450 mm (-1,050 mm).

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: round or slightly flattened on the top, smooth or cracked
  into small scales, white but becoming flushed yellowish with age and
  finally olive-brown when old, frequently the outer layer dries and
  breaks away to expose the powdery spore-mass within.

  Stem: absent or only present as a small cone of tissue.

  Spore-mass: whitish, cream-coloured and finally olive-brown.

  Spores: small, brownish, minutely warted and spherical, 4-5 µm in
  diameter and intermixed with thick-walled, branched, brown hyphae, 3-5
  µm broad.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: On the ground in copses, at the edges of
  woods, under hedges or on refuse tips, and sometimes in gardens. It
  may appear in the same place year after year, and has been recorded
  growing beneath the rafters in houses.

  _General Information_: When young it is white inside or cream-coloured
  before the spores have developed and can then be cut into slices and
  cooked. I have seen it on sale in markets in N. America and it is
  collected for food by many in Europe. Its pumpkin-shape with a
  circumference of anything up to 1,050 mm makes this fungus easily
  recognisable. The number of spores produced by a fruit-body measuring
  400 × 280 mm has been calculated by A. H. R. Buller as
  7,000,000,000,000 spores!


  ~Calvatia utriformis~ (Fries) Jaap (= _C. caelata_ (Persoon) Morgan)
  has a goblet-like shape and a distinct, sterile base composed of large
  cells with a prominent membrane separating them from the spore-mass;
  the spores are 4-5 µm diameter, smooth and spherical.


  ~C. excipuliformis~ (Fries) Perdeck (= _C. saccata_ (Vahl.) Morgan) is
  pestle-shaped with a well developed stem. The spore-mass is composed
  of warted, globose spores, 4-5 µm in diameter.


  ~Bovista nigrescens~ Persoon is very similar in shape to the Giant
  puff-ball, but is very much smaller; it lacks a stalk, being attached
  to the substrate only by mycelial cords. It commences white, but then
  darkens to become purplish brown at maturity when it also breaks from
  its moorings and rolls about in the wind.

  The last three species are found on heaths, in pastures or on the
  ground in woods.

  _Illustrations_: _C. gigantea_--Hvass 312; LH 217; NB 371; WD 109⁷.
  _B. nigrescens_--Hvass 311; LH 219; NB 37³.

[Illustration: Plate 63. Puff-Balls]


Earth-stars and Earth-balls

The earth-stars, i.e. species of _Geastrum_, are closely related to the
puff-balls, but differ in having two very distinct and separate
enclosing walls, the outer one splitting at maturity to expose a
‘puff-ball’ within; an example of the genus is _G. triplex_ Jungh, found
in parks or under beech trees or _G. rufescens_ Pers. (illustrated) in
mixed woodland. The outer skin splits in different ways in different
species: in some it splits like a star--hence the common name of
Earth-star, in some the spore-mass is raised as if on stilts. There are
several species of _Geastrum_ recorded for Britain, but they are
decidedly uncommon.

The Earth-balls are, however, far from uncommon and may be met with from
early summer until late autumn in any wood particularly those on sandy
soils. They are unrelated to the earth-stars.


Earth-balls


~Scleroderma citrinum~ Persoon

  Common earth-ball

  _Fruit-body_: diameter 25-75 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: rounded or flattened on top, sometimes lobed, very firm,
  yellow or clay colour, scaly, thick, white within or pinkish, if cut
  when immature, and then purplish black as the spores mature.

  Stem: absent or reduced to a small group of mycelial cords.

  Spore-mass: purplish black.

  Spores: medium to large, dark brown, 8-13 µm in diameter and covered
  with a delicate network.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: On the ground in woods or on heaths.

  _General Information_: This fungus is found in many books under the
  name of _S. aurantium_. _S. verrucosum_ Persoon is closely related,
  but has a stem-like rooting base and an umber brown spore-mass. The
  spores are also slightly different; they are 10-14 µm in diameter and
  ornamented with spines and ridges.

  The earth-balls appear to have characters in common with the false
  truffles, indeed sometimes they grow partially buried in the sandy
  soil of woods. Like the false truffles they have been used to
  adulterate pâté as a cheap substitute for true truffles (see p. 244).
  It is not wise, however, to eat earth-balls as there are cases of
  poisoning known. Although truffle-like, they should be avoided except
  under the guidance of an expert, as with agarics.

  _Illustrations_: _Geastrum triplex_--Hvass 307; LH 221; NB 155¹.
  _Scleroderma citrinum_--Hvass 320; LH 223; NB 155⁵; WD 111³.

[Illustration: Plate 64. Earth-balls and Earth-stars]


Stinkhorns


~Phallus impudicus~ Persoon

  Common stinkhorn

  _Fruit-body_: Egg: 30-60 mm in diameter--then _Cap_: 25-40 mm and
  _Stem_: width 18-25 mm; length 100-150 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: commencing as a white, silky egg-like structure full of
  jelly in which is embedded a conical cap attached only at its apex to
  a cylindrical white, spongy, hollow stem.

  Cap: covered in a slimy mass of dark olive-coloured spores at
  maturity.

  Stem: cylindrical, rapidly elongating, white, spongy and hollow.

  Spore-mass: dark olive-green, smelling strongly, foetid.

  Spores: small, pale olive, oblong and 3-5 × 2 µm in size.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common from summer to autumn on the ground
  in woods and in gardens.

  _General Information_: Easily recognised by its shape and evil smell
  which can be detected at some distance. The unburst eggs are called
  ‘witches eggs’. Under favourable conditions the egg bursts and the
  stem elongates carrying the cap and spore-mass with it. The spore-mass
  is attractive to flies and they feed upon it; spores stick to their
  feet and so are transported from one place to another.

  The very similar _P. hadriani_ Persoon is frequently found in
  sand-dunes; it differs in having a lilaceous colour to the egg. An
  interesting variety of the common stinkhorn is uncommonly found and
  differs in having a skirt-like frill beneath the cap. The jelly in the
  egg is a water-store and is used by the fungus to expand rapidly.


  ~Mutinus caninus~ (Persoon) Fries, the ‘Dogs stinkhorn’, is found
  around old stumps or on piles of leaves. It has the spore-mass
  covering an orange-red pear-shaped cap which is itself fused to the
  stem.

  The stinkhorns and their allies appear to be commoner in warmer
  countries where they take on many bizarre shapes. Other than the three
  species noted above stinkhorns are rarely found in this country, but
  when they are it would appear they have been introduced with foreign
  imports such as timber, ornamental plants, vegetables etc.

  Eggs of phalloids brought into the laboratory can be surrounded by wet
  tissues or blotting paper and then allowed to develop further in a
  dish or box. Provided the skin covering the spores is not broken or
  injured the fungus will not smell and therefore before it becomes
  unpleasant, the whole mechanism of expansion can be studied.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 323; LH 215; NB 153¹; WD 108¹.

[Illustration: Plate 65. Stinkhorns]


Birds nest fungi


~Crucibulum laeve~ (de Candolle) Kambly

  _Fruit-body_: diameter 8-12 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: ochraceous brown or sand-colour, downy and then smooth,
  truncate, cup-shaped with the cup at first closed by a yellowish
  membrane which finally splits to expose a group of pale brown or dingy
  whitish, circular, lens-shaped ‘eggs’ (peridioles), scattered on a
  shiny pale ochraceous interior.

  Spores: medium-sized, in packets within ‘eggs’, ellipsoid, hyaline,
  smooth and 8-10 × 4-6 µm in size.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common in crowded groups on dead twigs,
  fern stems, straw and wheat stubble.

  _General Information_: _Cyathus_ differs from _Crucibulum_ in the more
  complex fruit-body which consists of three layers, and the peridioles
  forming on distinct stalks. Two species are frequently seen: _Cyathus
  striatus_ Persoon has a grey, fluted inner surface to the cup and
  strongly hairy red-brown outer surface; the spores measure 16-22 ×
  9-10 µm. _Cyathus olla_ Persoon has a smooth, shiny, grey surface and
  minutely silky, yellowish grey outer surface. _C. striatus_ is found
  on twigs, and about dead stumps; _C. olla_ is more frequent in gardens
  on herbaceous debris and dead pieces of perennial flowers--or even in
  plant pots.

  ~Sphaerobolus stellatus~ Persoon is more distantly related and grows
  on decaying leaves, bracken fronds, partially buried twigs and dung.
  It is an intriguing fungus because it possesses a remarkable
  spore-dispersal mechanism. The inner layer of the fruit-body when ripe
  suddenly turns inside out catapulting the inner spore-mass to
  distances of anything up to 4,200 mm, that is a distance of 1,000
  times the size of the fruit-body. The fruit-body is externally whitish
  or pale yellow, but this layer splits into lobes like a star exposing
  the bright orange inner surface and pale spore-mass.

  _Illustrations_: _Crucibulum laeve_--LH 223; WD 111⁷. _Cyathus
  striatus_--LH 223; WD 111⁹. _Sphaerobolus stellatus_--LH 223; WD 111⁵.

[Illustration: Plate 66. Bird’s nest fungi]




E. CUP FUNGI AND ALLIES


_General Notes._

The Ascomycetes differ from all the other fungi so far dealt with in
that the spores develop enclosed in a microscopic envelope or
sac--called the ascus. Usually eight spores are produced in each ascus
and they are often dispersed violently into the air. Elf-cups and morels
are typical Ascomycetes, but the group also includes innumerable minute
forms of the microscopic fungi, small discs, minute flask-like
structures, some of which are parasitic on leaves and stems of higher
plants. In number the large species of Ascomycetes are few when compared
with the others and therefore can only be given but a mention in the
present account. When collected the Ascomycetes can be distinguished
from the Basidiomycetes by simply examining a slice of the
spore-producing tissue where the tell-tale asci will be seen (see p.
21). If the fruit-body is placed in a tin when collected and opened in a
warm room all the mature asci explode at once producing a cloud of
spores visible in the air immediately over the fruit-body.


~Aleuria aurantia~ (Fries) Fuckel

  Orange-peel fungus or Scarlet elf-cup

  _Fruit-body_: diameter 25-50 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: cup-shaped then undulating and becoming flattened,
  irregular, sometimes split and lacking a stem.

  Inner surface: bright orange.

  Outer surface: whitish and minutely downy.

  Flesh: thin and white.

  Spores: very long, ellipsoid, ornamented with a coarse network which
  projects at each end, and 17-24 × 9-11 µm in size; eight contained in
  an elongate, cylindric ascus.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common on bare soil in woods and open
  spaces, on road verges, between stone sets and on lawns.

[Illustration: Plate 67. Cup-fungi]


~Peziza repanda~ Persoon

  Elf-cup

  _Fruit-body_: diameter 20-50 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 67.

  Fruit-body: cup-shaped with white, crenulate margin, becoming expanded
  and undulating, and lacking a stem.

  Inner surface: light chestnut brown.

  Outer surface: whitish or pale fawn and finely scurfy.

  Flesh: whitish or fawn, and appearing as if layered.

  Spores: very long, ellipsoid, smooth and 15-16 × 9-10 µm in size;
  eight contained in an elongate, cylindrical ascus.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: On bare soil in woods, farm-yards,
  hedgerows, etc.

  _General Information_: There are many different species of _Peziza_
  classified on the shape and ornamentation of the spores and colour of
  the fruit-body--see pp. 216 and 220. _P. badia_ is darker, although
  similar in other ways; it is found on pathsides in woods and has
  roughened spores.


~Morchella esculenta~ St Amans

  Common morel

  _Cap_: width 30-40 mm; length 35-60 mm. _Stem_: width 15-25 mm; length
  50-80 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: consisting of a head with a honeycomb-like arrangement of
  narrow ridges surrounding angular and often slightly elongated,
  shallow pits, on a cylindric or swollen stem.

  Cap: brownish grey then reddish brown or ochraceous brown.

  Stem: cylindrical or slightly enlarged at the base, brittle, hollow,
  minutely scurfy and/or furrowed.

  Flesh: ochraceous.

  Spore-print: cream.

  Spores: very long, broadly ellipsoid, pale honey, smooth but for some
  small granules at each end, and 16-23 × 11-14 µm in size; eight
  contained in an elongate cylindrical ascus.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Infrequent in gardens, on river-banks,
  sites of bonfires, etc., in spring.

  _Illustrations_: F7^{c}; LH 41; NB 41³.

[Illustration: Plate 68. Morels and related fungi]


~Gyromirta esculenta~ (Persoon) Fries

  Turban-fungus

  _Cap_: width 30-40 mm; length 35-45 mm. _Stem_: width 15-25 mm; length
  50-80 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 68.

  Fruit-body: consisting of a subglobose, more or less lobed, wrinkled
  and convoluted head on a short stem.

  Cap: yellow-brown to reddish brown and becoming hollow or chambered.

  Stem: flesh-coloured or creamy grey and powdery.

  Flesh: yellow-buff, darker in the cap.

  Spores: very long, ellipsoid, usually containing two or more yellowish
  oil drops and 18-22 × 9-12 µm in size; eight contained in an elongate
  cylindrical ascus.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This fungus is found in the spring, under
  conifers, but also on railway embankments, river banks, etc. This
  fungus is also known as the ‘Lorel’ or ‘Elephant’s ears’.

  _General Information_: _Mitromorpha semilibera_ (Fries) Léville
  differs from species of _Morchella_ in that the head is for its
  greater length free from the stalk. It is frequently found in the
  spring in gardens, tennis courts, etc.

  _Illustrations_: G. esculenta--F 6^{d}; Hvass 327; LH 39.


~Helvella crispa~ Fries

  Common white helvella

  _Cap_: width 18-28 mm. _Stem_: width 8-12 mm; length 40-65 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: consisting of a saddle-shaped cap on a short stem.

  Cap: convoluted towards the centre, two lobed, wavy at the margin,
  white or cream-coloured.

  Stem: cylindric and hollow, white or cream-coloured and unevenly and
  deeply longitudinally furrowed.

  Flesh: thin and pale.

  Spores: very long, broadly ellipsoid, with a large central oil drop
  and 18-20 × 10-13 µm in size; eight contained in an elongate
  cylindrical ascus.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Frequent in damp woods with deciduous
  trees, from early summer until autumn.

  _General Information_: Plate 68.


  ~Helvella lacunosa~ Fries, ‘Slate grey Helvella’ is similar in stature
  but differs in being ash-grey or dark grey.


  ~Leptopodia elastica~ (St Amans) Boudier is better placed in the genus
  _Helvella_. It differs in having a slender, smooth, cylindric stem and
  irregularly 2-3 lobed, yellow or tan-coloured cap.


  ~Cyathipodia macropus~ (Fries) Dennis is sometimes placed in
  _Helvella_. It differs in having a grey cup-shaped cap on a long,
  slender stem. The spore-bearing tissue in the last species is the
  inner surface of the cup whilst in _Helvella_ and _Leptopodia_ it is
  on the outer surface of the saddle-like cap.


  ~Mitrula paludosa~ Fries, the ‘Bog beacon’, is a similar fungus
  growing in spring to early autumn on old leaves and detritus in
  swamps. It is widespread and has a bright orange head on a white
  stem--as the common name might suggest. It grows to a height of about
  20 mm.

  _Illustrations_: _H. crispa_--F 6^{e}; Hvass 331; LH 41. _H.
  lacunosa_--F 6^{b}; Hvass 330; LH 39; NB 153⁴. _L. elastica_--Hvass
  332; LH 39. _C. macropus_--F 6^{a}; LH 39.


~Rhizina undulata~

  Pine fire fungus

  _Fruit-body_: width 20-60 mm, or several coalescing.

  _Description_: Plate 69.

  Fruit-body: chestnut-brown to rust colour with a distinct white or
  cream margin, fleshy, smooth, concave and thrown up into irregular
  humps.

  Stem: lacking, but undersurface pale, ochraceous, and bearing numerous
  cylindrical branched, whitish root-like structures, 1-2 mm thick.

  Flesh: reddish brown, tough and fibrous.

  Spores: very, very long, spindle-shaped with two or more internal
  droplets, with hyaline extensions at each end, and 22-40 × 8-11 µm in
  size; eight contained in an elongate cylindrical ascus.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Infrequent in pine woods but common at the
  sites of bonfires in pine woodlands.


~Daldinia concentrica~ (Fries) Cesati & de Notaris

  Cramp-balls

  _Fruit-body_: diameter 20-40 mm × 20-60 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: date-brown at first finally black or dark brownish black,
  tough, minutely pimply over entire surface although at first covered
  in a powdery dust of asexual spores (conidia).

  Stem: lacking.

  Flesh: pale grey or buff, concentrically zoned with darker purplish
  black layers below which are small, black dots.

  Spores: very long, black, ellipsoid with one flattened side and 12-17
  × 6-9 µm in size; eight contained in an elongate cylindrical ascus.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common on old deciduous wood, particularly
  of ash and beech.

  _General Information_: These two fungi are unrelated; the first is
  related to the disc-fungi, like species of _Peziza_, whilst _Daldinia_
  is related to the Dead man’s finger fungus. _Rhizina undulata_ has
  been shown to be able to attack roots of pine or larch trees and cause
  death. _Daldinia_ is a pure saprophyte rotting down wood into more
  simple compounds later to be incorporated into the soil-system. The
  common name ‘Cramp-balls’ refers to the old belief that if one of the
  fruit-bodies is carried in the pocket it saves the possessor from
  cramp and rheumatism. The other common name for the same fungus is
  ‘King Alfred’s cakes’. The black colour of the fruit-body is like that
  of charred cakes--resembling the cakes in the legend which King Alfred
  allowed to burn.

  _Illustrations_: _R. undulata_--LH 37; NB 111⁶. _D. concentrica_--F
  7^{b}; LH 47; NB 147⁷.


~Xylosphaera polymorpha~ (Mérat) Dumortier

  Dead man’s fingers

  _Fruit-body_: width 10-20 mm; length 30-60 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: more or less club-shaped, irregularly or evenly lobed at
  apex, at first light brown due to development of asexually produced
  spores (conidia) but finally almost black.

  Stem: black and short.

  Flesh: white, fibrous and tough.

[Illustration: Plate 69. Cup-fungi allies]

  Crust: black, thin, pimply with the protruding tips of the perithecia,
  and sometimes irregularly furrowed.

  Spores: very long, fusiform with one flattened side, black and 20-32 ×
  5-9 µm in size; eight contained in an elongate cylindrical ascus.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: Common either solitary or in clusters on
  dead stumps or on buried wood, especially that of beech. This fungus
  may be found throughout the year.


~Xylosphaera hypoxylon~ Dumortier

  Stag’s horn fungus

  _Fruit-body_: width 4-8 mm; length 25-60 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 69.

  Fruit-body: slender, subcylindrical to strap-shaped and usually forked
  repeatedly near the tip, white at first due to production of conidia
  and then black or dark brown and covered in pimples.

  Stem: black and hairy.

  Spores: very long, bean-shaped, black and 11-14 × 5-6 µm in size;
  eight in an elongate ascus.

  _General Information_: Another name for _X. hypoxylon_ is
  ‘Candle-snuff fungus’. Other club-shaped ascomycetes include members
  of the genus _Geoglossum_ (already mentioned p. 172) and members of
  the genus _Cordyceps_. Plate 69.


  ~Cordyceps militaris~ (St Amans) Link, the ‘Scarlet caterpillar
  fungus’, produces orange-red or orange, minutely roughened
  fruit-bodies up to 50 mm high, which grow on larvae and pupae of moths
  buried in the soil. It is not infrequent late in the autumn in pasture
  land.


  ~C. ophioglossoides~ (Fries) Link produces long (up to 100 mm high)
  yellow stemmed, dark and rough headed fruit-bodies growing on the
  subterranean fungus _Elaphomyces_--see p. 244.


  ~C. capitata~ (Fries) Link also grows on fungi beneath the soil
  surface but has a rounded head. _Leotia lubrica_ Persoon the ‘Gum-drop
  fungus’ is similarly coloured but grows on soil under trees and is
  gelatinous. It grows in autumn and is quite common and in fact more
  related to the Discomycetes than to _Cordyceps_.

  _Illustrations_: _X. polymorpha_--F 7^{d}; LH 47; NB 147⁶. _X.
  hypoxylon_--F 7^{e}; LH 47; NB 147⁵. _C. militaris_--LH 48.




F. SPECIALIZED HABITATS


(i) Fungi of dung and straw heaps


~Bolbitius vitellinus~ (Fries) Fries

  Yellow cow-pat toadstool

  _Cap_: width 20-40 mm. _Stem_: width 2-5 mm; length 30-60 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: chrome-yellow or lemon-yellow when young, paling with age at
  margin to become cinnamon-buff, bell-shaped but rapidly expanding to
  become plane or slightly umbonate, smooth, viscid but soon drying;
  margin striate then radially grooved, often split and the whole cap
  soon collapsing.

  Stem: slender, whitish, cream colour to pale yellow, at apex covered
  in small, white floccose scales but downy at the base, fragile and
  soon collapsing.

  Gills: adnexed or free, cinnamon-buff, thin and crowded.

  Flesh: yellowish, very thin and lacking distinct smell.

  Spore print: rust-brown.

  Spores: long, yellow-brown under the microscope, ellipsoid with a very
  distinct germ-pore about 13 × 8 µm in size (11-15 × 6-9 µm).

  Facial cystidia: rare, balloon-shaped.

  Marginal cystidia: swollen, flask-shaped with a variable, elongate
  neck.

  _General Information_: This fungus is common on horse droppings or
  other manures, but it may also be found amongst grass in pastures and
  in sand-dunes, and gardens on piles of rotting grass stems or straw.
  It is easily recognised by the colour and rapid expansion of the cap
  and the sudden collapse of the whole fruit-body. ‘Vitellinus’ means
  yolk of an egg and refers to the persistently bright yellow
  cap-centre, so obvious even when the fruit-body collapses. This
  collapsing is not one of autodigestion as described for members of the
  genus _Coprinus_. It is variable both in size and habitat, and I even
  have records of the fungus growing within herbaceous stems.

  _Illustrations_: LH 153; WD 80⁶.


~Stropharia semiglobata~ (Fries) Quélet

  Dung-roundhead

  _Cap_: width 10-35 mm. _Stem_: width 4-7 mm; length 25-50 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: hemispherical or slightly umbonate, sometimes flattened and
  hardly expanding even with age, very viscid, smooth, pale yellow-ochre
  or yellowish tan.

  Stem: slender, straight, white then yellowish, smooth, viscid, but
  then dry and shiny below an imperfectly formed, thin ring.

  Gills: adnate, almost triangular in shape, crowded, dark brown to
  purplish black, but with ochraceous areas at maturity.

  Flesh: pale ochre.

  Spore-print: purplish brown.

  Spores: very long, dark brown under the microscope, smooth, ellipsoid
  with large germ-pore and about 18 × 10 µm in size (17-20 × 9-10 µm).

  Facial cystidia: spindle-shaped, thin-walled and filled with amorphous
  contents which become yellow in solutions containing ammonia.

  Marginal cystidia: spindle-shaped or flask-shaped, numerous,
  thin-walled and typically yellowing as above.

  _General Information_: ‘Semiglobata’ means hemispherical and refers to
  the shape of the cap of _S. semiglobata_; it is a very variable fungus
  in both size of the cap and the prominence of the ring. The
  Dung-roundhead grows only on dung which is acidic in its soil status,
  whilst _Panaeolus semiovatus_ (Fries) Lundell next described (p. 210)
  grows on slightly to distinctly base-rich dung. This may explain why
  in Britain the Dung-roundhead is the commoner of the two species.
  However, _P. semiovatus_ was formerly placed in the genus _Stropharia_
  because of its blackish spores and distinct ring. The spores of
  _Stropharia_ in the mass are violaceous black whilst those of _P.
  semiovatus_ are brownish black. Under the microscope they are also
  differently coloured and have different chemical compositions as their
  reaction with dilute solutions of ammonia shows; the spores of the
  first species turn purplish olive in ammonia and those of the second
  species become very dark brown.

  _Illustrations_: F 33^{b}; Hvass 171; LH 153; NB 31⁵; WD 75³.

[Illustration: Plate 70. Dung-fungi]


Mottle-gills--on dung from Spring until Autumn.


~Panaeolus semiovatus~ (Fries) Lundell

  _Cap_: width 20-70 mm. _Stem_: width 5-10 mm; length 80-160 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: oval or bell-shaped, not expanding, dingy whitish or pale clay
  colour, smooth, slimy when moist, but soon drying and then becoming
  shiny, often wrinkled and cracked, and ornamented with fragments of
  veil at the margin.

  Stem: dull, straight, rather rigid, tapering upwards, white, and
  striate at apex above a whitish erect and membranous, often
  collapsing, ring; yellowish below the ring and whitish and cottony at
  the slightly swollen base.

  Gills: adnate, greyish then black, mottled and crowded.

  Flesh: whitish or pale ochre.

  Spore-print: black.

  Spores: very long, very dark brown under the microscope with large
  obvious germ-pore and 18 × 10 µm (16-20 × 9-11 µm) in size.

  Facial cystidia: flask-shaped and with amorphous contents.

  Marginal cystidia: numerous, flask-shaped.


~Panaeolus sphinctrinus~ (Fries) Quélet

  _Cap_: width 15-35 mm. _Stem_: width 3-6 mm; length 60-95 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: bell-shaped, hardly expanding, expallent, dark grey to olivaceous
  black, much paler when dry and zoned when half dry; margin ornamented
  with a white fringe of veil fragments.

  Stem: long, slender, straight, rather rigid but fragile, grey and
  completely powdered with white.

  Gills: adnate, crowded and grey then blackened, mottled throughout
  except at the white fringed edge.

  Flesh: reddish brown.

  Spore-print: black.

  Spores: long, very dark brown under the microscope, broadly
  lemon-shaped with large germ-pore, smooth and 14-15 × 9-10 µm in size
  (14-19 × 8-10 × 10-12 µm).

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  Marginal cystidia: numerous, cylindrical, flexuous and hyaline.

  General Information: _P. sphinctrinus_ is recognised by the overall
  grey colouration and very distinct white fringe to the cap-margin.

  _P. campanulatus_ (Fries) Quélet which is said to be common is in
  fact infrequent and many records really refer to _P. sphinctrinus_.
  The word _semiovatus_ means half ovate and refers to the shape of the
  cap in _P. semiovatus_. _Sphinctrinus_ means banded, referring to the
  zoned cap of the fungus when it is partially dry.

  _Illustrations_: _P. semiovatus_--LH 145; WD 77³. _P.
  sphinctrinus_--NB 41⁵; WD 78¹.


~Coprinus cinereus~ (Fries) S. F. Gray

  Dung-heap ink-cap

  _Cap_: width 20-40 mm. _Stem_: width 4-8 mm; length 50-100 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: oval then rapidly expanding, covered at first in a mass of dense,
  white or greyish woolly scales which break up into patches and finally
  leave the cap shiny, brownish grey at centre and striate and dark grey
  at the margin.

  Stem: white, covered particularly towards the base with white, woolly
  scales, long, fragile, tapering upwards and at the base often
  elongated into a ‘tap root’ buried in the dung.

  Gills: free, white but then rapidly dissolving into a black liquid.

  Flesh: thin and whitish.

  Spore-print: violaceous black.

  Spores: medium sized, ellipsoid, smooth with a distinct germ-pore and
  10-12 × 5-6 µm in size.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  Marginal cystidia: inflated and large.

  _General Information_: It is found on manure heaps, on straw dung and
  on silage heaps: very common throughout the year.

  _C. macrocephalus_ (Berkeley) Berkeley is very closely related to _C.
  cinereus_, but differs in having much larger spores over 12-15 × 7-9
  µm, a long cap and a stem which lacks a rooting base.

  _Coprinus radiatus_ (Fries) S. F. Gray is smaller in stature and also
  differs in spore-size (11-14 × 6-7 µm). _C. pseudoradiatus_ Kühner &
  Josserand is minute and has even smaller spores (7-9 × 4-5 µm). The
  dung-heap ink-cap has long been used by scientists in genetic studies,
  usually under the name of _C. lagopus_ (Fries) Fries. However, this
  latter species, although similar, grows only on woodland detritus; it
  has narrower spores. The dung-heap ink-cap may be referred to in other
  books as _C. fimetarius_ Fries or _C. macrorhizus_ (Fries) Rea and
  whilst _cinereus_ means grey referring to the colour, _fimetarius_
  means dung--from the habitat, and _macrorhizus_ refers to the long
  rooting base found in some specimens.

  _Illustrations_: LH 137; NB 41¹⁰; WD 81⁴.


The genus _Coprinus_--or Ink-caps

The genus _Coprinus_ is easily recognised from all other agarics by the
structure and development of the fruit-body. In the field, most species
of the genus can be recognised by the gradual conversion of the gills,
and often the cap tissue into a black liquid resembling ink--hence the
name inky-caps. The conversion of the gills to an inky mass is called
autodigestion and the process is complete within a few hours; this
mechanism enables spores to be dispersed immediately they have ripened.
Unlike other agarics the spores are not shot off into the spaces between
the gills, but directly into the air. The gills are parallel-sided in
_Coprinus_ and not wedge-shaped as in more normal agarics, and in order
to achieve spore dispersal the gills must disintegrate; Coprini are very
specialised.

_Coprinus_ is a large genus with over seventy members in the British
Isles, many of which are strictly dung-loving. It is impossible to give
more than one example in full here, for although many of the large
species can be recognised on sight the smaller ones require the aid of a
microscope. The interested student must therefore refer to more advanced
texts, but in order to demonstrate the diversity of the Coprini and how
they are classified the following key to the sections of _Coprinus_ will
be found useful.

  1. Cap naked of any veil fragments, either smooth or covered in minute
     hairs                                                             2

     Cap covered when young by powdery or hairy veil, particles of which
     either may persist on the cap until maturity or may disappear
     quickly                                                           3

  2. Cap completely naked--group Nudi, e.g. _C. miser_ (Karsten) Karsten

     Cap with hairs giving it a frosted appearance--group Setulosi, e.g.
     _C. ephemerus_ (Fries) Fries, _C. pellucidus_ Karsten and _C.
     bisporus_ J. Lange

  3. Veil on the cap composed under the microscope of rounded cells
     giving the cap a floccose powdery appearance--group Vestiti, e.g.
     _C. patouillardii_ Quélet, _C. niveus_ (Fries) Fries and _C.
     ephemeroides_ (Fries) Fries

     Veil on the cap composed under the microscope of elongate cells,
     either like thin-hairs or strings of sausages                     4

  4. Veil on the cap composed under the microscope of strings of
     sausage-shaped cells--group Lanatuli, e.g. _C. cinereus_, _C.
     pseudoradiatus_, _C. radiatus_ (see p. 211)

     Veil on the cap composed under the microscope of thick- or
     thin-walled, flexuous or straight, filamentous, hardly inflated
     cells--group Impexi, e.g. _C. filamentifer_ Kühner, _C.
     vermiculifer_ Dennis.

[Illustration: Plate 71. Dung-fungi--The genus ~Coprinus~]


General notes on dung-loving fungi and their habitats

Dung fungi are highly satisfactory for demonstrating the diversity and
morphology of a group of related organisms within a single ecological
system, as representatives of most of the major groups of fungi usually
grow on dung after a period of incubation. Dung will always produce
characteristic fungi whatever time of year it is collected.

Dung is best incubated in a light place, for example on a window sill,
in a warm room on layers of blotting paper or other absorbent material.
For rabbit-pellets and samples of similar size petri-dishes are ideal,
but for cow, horse and similar types of dung large covered dishes such
as casseroles or sandwich containers are very good. Samples should not
be kept in airtight containers for long periods of time as under such
conditions animal life present rapidly breaks down the dung and induces
anaerobic conditions. Instead larvae and earthworms should be excluded
from the sample as they decompose the dung and inhibit fungal growth but
their activity can be reduced, if causing a problem, by spraying the
sample lightly with a proprietary fly-kill aerosol.

By keeping the dung under constant observation during incubation a whole
succession of fungi can be seen. Thus the first fungi to appear are the
moulds which although numerous need a microscope for their
identification. The moulds are followed by a series of Ascomycetes
(_Sporormia_ & _Sordaria_ with flask-shaped fruit-bodies and
_Iodophanus_, _Coprobia_ and _Cheilymenia_ with disc-shaped
fruit-bodies), which are best sought with the use of a powerful
hand-lens or a stereoscopic binocular microscope when their full beauty
will be revealed. However, because they need the aid of instruments even
to see them they cannot be considered larger fungi. The fruit-bodies of
the Basidiomycetes are readily seen with the naked eye, but a hand-lens
is still very useful for observing features of the cap and stem,
particularly the veil characters. The Basidiomycetes usually conclude
the succession of fungi found on dung and soon after this state the dung
is colonised by mosses and higher plants and later it is fully
incorporated into the soil.

[Illustration: Plate 72. Dung-fungi: Cup fungi and allies]

Dung is a very useful substrate for studying succession. However,
equally interesting results can be obtained from observing the fungi
which appear on a stump, colonise a newly laid lawn, or indeed those
growing on refuse such as a cast-out rug; microscopic and larger fungi
are all to be found.

If the dung cannot be incubated immediately it should be dried quickly,
for most dung-fungi will survive such treatment and grow when the sample
is remoistened. The blotting-paper on which the dung is placed should be
kept moist throughout the incubation period.

One large discomycete (up to 80 mm across) occurring on manure-heaps
must, however, be mentioned, this is _Peziza vesiculosa_ St Amans (see
p. 200); the inner surface of this cup-fungus becomes detached from the
flesh at maturity and forms blisters.


(ii) Fungi of bonfire-sites


~Pholiota highlandensis~ (Peck) A. H. Smith

  Charcoal pholiota

  _Cap_: width 20-50 mm. _Stem_: width 4-8 mm; length 25-60 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 73.

  Cap: convex then flattened and slightly umbonate, smooth, very sticky
  at first, but becoming shiny when dry, orange-yellow to sand-colour;
  the margin is first incurved and ornamented with filaments from the
  veil, but these are soon lost.

  Stem: dirty yellow, darker towards the base, cylindric or narrowed
  downwards and covered in small fibrillose scales.

  Gills: clay-coloured then dull brown, adnate and crowded.

  Flesh: yellowish.

  Spore-print: dull rust-brown.

  Spores: medium-sized, ellipsoid, smooth, dull brown under the
  microscope and 7-8 × 3-4 µm in size.

  Facial cystidia: spindle-shaped with obtuse apex.

  Marginal cystidia: similar to facial cystidia but usually smaller.

  _General Information_: This fungus which occurs from spring to autumn
  is recognised by the habitat, colour of the fruit-body and the
  spore-size. It is known in many books as _Flammula carbonaria_
  (Fries) Kummer, but the genus _Flammula_ is no longer used for it
  refers to a flowering plant in the buttercup family.

  _P. highlandensis_ is the same fungus as that referred to as _Pholiota
  carbonaria_ by European Mycologists, but this name cannot be used for
  it refers to an entirely different N. American species.
  ‘Highlandensis’, in fact, refers to the locality where the present
  fungus was first found in the United States of America. The true _P.
  carbonaria_ A. H. Smith has only been found once in Europe and this
  only recently in the south of England. It differs in the reddish
  orange scales on the stem; indeed it is a much brighter fungus than
  the common charcoal _Pholiota_.


~Tephrocybe anthracophila~ (Lasch) P. D. Orton

  _Cap_: width 1-4 mm. _Stem_: width 1 mm; length 2-5 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 73.

  Cap: blackish when wet, drying sooty brown, slightly depressed in the
  centre, smooth, and viscid.

  Stem: sooty brown, tough and smooth.

  Flesh: sooty brown.

  Gills: whitish then grey, adnate and not very crowded.

  Spores: medium sized, subglobose, 4-6 × 4-5 µm in diameter and
  minutely roughened.

  Spore-print: white, not blueing in solutions of iodine.

  _General Information_: _T. atrata_ also grows on burnt soil and is
  very closely related, but differs in its spores being broadly
  ellipsoid and smooth. _Mycena leucogala_ also grows on burnt soil (see
  p. 88).

  _Illustrations_: _T. anthracophila_--LH 83. _T. atrata_--WD 4^{b}.


~Psathyrella pennata~ (Fries) Pearson & Dennis

  Bonfire brittle-cap

  _Cap_: width 10-30 mm. _Stem_: width 1-3 mm; length 30-40 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: conical or bell-shaped then expanding and slightly umbonate,
  whitish because of a coating of dense fibrils, but soon becoming
  brownish as these are lost.

  Stem: short, stout, white and densely floccose.

  Gills: slightly adnate, pale brownish grey with pink tinge, then
  dark-brown.

  Spore-print: purplish brown.

  Spores: medium sized, oval, ellipsoid with an obvious germ-pore,
  purplish brown under the microscope and 8-9 × 4-5 µm in size.

  Marginal & facial cystidia: flask-shaped, hyaline with either a short
  or long neck.

  The brown-spored _Hebeloma anthracophila_ Maire is similar.


~Coprinus angulatus~ Peck

  Bonfire ink-cap

  _Cap_: width 4-25 mm. _Stem_: 1-3 mm; length 15-30 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: dark red-brown at first, then orange-brown, especially at the
  margin and appearing as if frosted all over, conical at first but
  rapidly expanding at the margin and becoming grey-brown, strongly
  striate and deliquescent, leaving finally only a central red-brown
  umbo.

  Stem: white and minutely hairy.

  Gills: free, dirty whitish then black.

  Spore-print: black-brown.

  Spores: medium sized, dark brown under the microscope, lobed like the
  hat of a bishop and 8-11 × 6-8 × 5-7 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: bottle-shaped, very variable.

  Facial cystidia: similar to marginal cystidia.

  _General Information_: It must be noted that this fungus has spores
  which require three quite different measurements to describe the
  dimension. Another species of _Coprinus_ found on burnt soil is _C.
  lagopides_ Karsten which resembles _C. cinereus_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  (p. 211); it is typified, however, by the rounded spores.

[Illustration: Plate 73. Fungi of bonfire-sites]


General notes on fungi of burnt sites

Several common fungi found at the sites of bonfires have their closest
relatives amongst various groups of microscopic fungi more than amongst
the large forms already discussed. Keeping a close watch at the site of
a former bonfire day by day, week by week and month by month is very
rewarding and shows a further example, like the dung habitat, of a
tightly knit community of various groups of fungi.

_Peziza repanda_ Persoon has been discussed in detail above (p. 200);
its close relatives _P. petersii_ Berkeley & Curtis (brown with grey
tints and with spores finely warted and measuring 10-12 × 5-6 µm), _P.
praetervisa_ Bresadola (violet or mauve and with spores finely warted
and measuring 11-13 × 6-8 µm), _P. violacea_ Persoon (dark violet with
smooth spores measuring 13-15 × 7-9 µm) and _P. echinospora_ Karsten
(dark chocolate brown with spores densely warted and 14-18 × 7-10 µm in
size) all grow on the sites of old bonfires or around charred root
stumps. _Rhizina undulata_ also found by charred stumps has been
described on p. 203. These are large to medium sized disc-fungi, but
there are many much smaller species which cannot be dealt with here,
such as species of _Anthracobia_ and _Trichophaea_. Pyrenomycetes are
also found on charred wood and soil. Probably the commonest species of
fungus met with is a pale reddish orange to rose-pink disc-fungus seated
on a white mycelial mat; this is _Pyronema omphalodes_ (St Amans)
Fuckel. _Morchella esculenta_ St Amans and _M. elata_ Fries (see p. 200)
appear to grow on the sites of garden bonfires or where cinders have
been spread on the soil surface. The stimulus for fruiting appears to be
due to the release of mineral nutrients during the process of burning.
Competition from other fungi appears to be reduced so rapid colonisation
by the bonfire fungi (carbonicoles) after the period of sterilisation
ensures their development. Many similar fungi were found about bomb- and
shell-craters on the continent during the two World Wars.

One microscope fungus, however, must be mentioned when considering
bonfires and that is _Neurospora sitophila_ Shear & Dodge so much used
in genetical studies. It can be found as the conidial state on burnt
soil and is called ‘Baker’s mould’ because it is frequently found
growing on refuse in the hot moist conditions of bakers’ kitchens.

[Illustration: Plate 74. Fungi of bonfire-sites]


(iii) Fungi of bogs and marshes


(a) _Sphagnum_ bogs


~Hypholoma elongatum~ (Fries) Ricken

  _Cap_: width 12-20 mm. _Stem_: width 3-5 mm; length 50-80 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 75.

  Cap: bell-shaped but rapidly expanding to become plane, honey-yellow
  with a greyish green tint, slightly striate at the margin and also
  with a few remnants of a fibrillose veil when very young, but these
  are soon lost.

  Stem: slender, smooth, whitish at the apex and yellow-brown or
  honey-yellow below.

  Gills: adnate and distant, pale ochraceous honey-yellow then lilaceous
  grey and finally sepia.

  Flesh: yellowish in the cap, red-brown in the stem and lacking a
  distinct smell.

  Spore-print: purplish brown.

  Spores: long, ellipsoid, fairly thick-walled, olivaceous brown under
  the microscope and with a small germ-pore, smooth and 10-12 × 6-7 µm
  in size.

  Marginal cystidia: flask-shaped and hyaline.

  Facial cystidia: flask-shaped with contents which turn yellowish in
  solutions containing ammonia.

  _General Information_: This fungus which appears from early summer to
  late autumn is recognised by the almost uniform ochraceous colour with
  hint of olive and its habit of growing in troops. The word elongatum
  means elongated and refers to the shape of the stem which pushes up
  through the _Sphagnum_ and in order to disperse its spores it must
  elongate so that it just pushes up above the bog-surface. _H.
  polytrichi_ is closely related to _H. elongatum_ but has a paler cap
  and stem and it grows in moss, particularly _Polytrichum_ in
  woodlands; the spores of _H. polytrichi_ are paler, slightly narrower
  and slightly thinner, but they have a much more distinct germ-pore.

  Both the above species have been formerly placed in _Psilocybe_, but
  they are more correctly classified in _Hypholoma_ along with the
  sulphur-tuft fungus (see p. 64) because of the cortina-like veil and
  specialised facial cystidia.

  _Illustrations_: WD 78⁵.


~Tephrocybe palustris~ (Peck) Donk

  _Cap_: width 12-30 mm. _Stem_: width 3-5 mm; length 50-75 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 75.

  Cap: bell-shaped then plane-convex, but finally depressed at centre,
  watery buff to greyish with flush of ochre or smoky grey, striate to
  centre when moist, but drying out non-striate and uniformly ochraceous
  buff.

  Stem: thin, rather long, smooth, similarly coloured to the cap or
  paler, fragile and whitish woolly at the base.

  Gills: dirty whitish, adnate with a tooth and not very crowded.

  Flesh: thin, watery buff, drying out ochraceous and with a strong
  smell of new meal.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium sized, hyaline under the microscope, oval, not turning
  blue-grey in solutions of iodine, and 6-7 × 4-5 µm in size.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _General Information_: This fungus which grows from late spring to
  autumn is usually associated with a greying and finally a killing of
  the _Sphagnum_, noticeable from a distance even in the absence of the
  fruiting-bodies as paler patches in the rich green bog. Another agaric
  found only in _Sphagnum_ bogs is _Omphalina sphagnicola_ (Berkeley)
  Moser with decurrent gills and long, elongate, hyaline spores.

  At the margin of _Sphagnum_ bogs, the fungus _Mycena bulbosa_ can be
  found attached to the base of tufts of rushes.

  Potting up a sward of _Sphagnum_ and retaining it in a warm greenhouse
  during winter favours the bog agarics to fruit when other larger fungi
  are not available.


~Mycena bulbosa~ (Cejp) Kühner

  _Cap_: width 3-6 mm. _Stem_: width 1 mm; length 10-15 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: dirty white, greyish and very gelatinous.

  Stem: very thin, hyaline with a very distinct hairy, basal disc.

  Gills: crowded, adnexed, very short and whitish.

  Spore-print: white, but because it is so small it is often difficult
  to see.

  Spores: medium sized, hyaline under the microscope, ellipsoid, not
  blueing in solutions of iodine, and 8-10 × 4 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: clavate or ventricose, hyaline and smooth.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _Illustrations_: T. palustris LH 83.


~Galerina paludosa~ (Fries) Kühner

  _Cap_: width 10-20 mm. _Stem_: width 3-5 mm; length 50-90 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: conico-convex expanding slightly but retaining the central umbo,
  striate to half-way, sand-colour to red-brown, hygrophanous, minutely
  floccose because of remnants of veil distributed over its surface, but
  soon becoming smooth.

  Stem: long, buried amongst the _Sphagnum_, red-brown and flecked with
  white fibrils, except at the finely hairy apex, the fibrils typically
  form a distinct but easily lost ring.

  Gills: almost horizontal, adnate to subdecurrent, pale at first and
  then rust-brown.

  Spore-print: rust-brown.

  Spores: medium-sized, ovate to slightly lemon-shaped, minutely warty,
  honey-brown under the microscope and about 10 × 6 µm in size, (9-11 ×
  6-7 µm).

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  Marginal cystidia: hyaline, almost cylindrical or bottle-shaped with
  an inflated base.

  _General Information_: This species grows from spring to early autumn
  in _Sphagnum_ bogs; several other species of _Galerina_ are also found
  in the same localities:--

  (i) _G. sphagnorum_ (Fries) Kühner has a convex cap, fibrillose silky
  and ochraceous brown stem, but it lacks the ring-zone so typical of
  _G. paludosa_. The smell is like that of meal when crushed and the
  gills are emarginate.

  (ii) _G. tibiicystis_ (Atkinson) Kühner has a rapidly expanding cap
  which becomes plano-convex or depressed at maturity; it also lacks a
  ring-zone, but the stem in this species is finely hairy because of the
  presence of numerous pin-shaped cells which can be seen only with the
  aid of a lens. The gills are broadly adnate.

  _Illustrations_: _G. paludosa_--LH 175.

[Illustration: Plate 75. Fungi of marshes]


(b) Alder-carrs


~Naucoria escharoides~ (Fries) Kummer

  _Cap_: width 12-30 mm. _Stem_: width 1-3 mm; length 25-45 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 76.

  Cap: pale yellowish ochre, but becoming darker ochraceous with age,
  scurfy, convex but then flattened, or with its edge upturned; the
  margin is slightly striate when moist.

  Stem: slender, pale to dirty yellowish ochre but darker brown at base,
  slightly fibrillose, particularly at first because of filaments from a
  veil, but these are soon lost.

  Gills: pale tan to brownish ochre with a paler, floccose margin,
  adnate and crowded.

  Flesh: yellowish ochre but lacking a distinct smell.

  Spore-print: clay-colour.

  Spores: medium sized, almond-shaped, pale brown under the microscope,
  warted and 10-11 × 5-6 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: swollen below, but drawn out into a hair-like apex.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _General Information_: Although this is a common species growing in
  damp places under alder it is difficult except with an expert eye to
  separate it from several closely related species which are also found
  in similar places. At present it is not known whether these fungi are
  favoured by the water-logged base-rich, reducing soils found nowhere
  else except under alder, or if they have a special relationship with
  the tree. There is ample evidence that soil conditions in alder woods
  are rather different from those found in other woodlands, but whatever
  the reason _Naucoria escharoides_ is only found under alder--in fact
  this species has been placed in the genus _Alnicola_ because of this
  character--_cola_ meaning inhabitant and _Alnus_ the tree of that
  name. Willow-carrs have not been as extensively studied as alder-carrs
  but there is evidence that a store of mycological information is still
  to be obtained from these places. Several species of _Naucoria_ have
  been described from only willow-carrs, while others are to be found
  under both alder and willows; about eight species are known to grow
  under alder. The word _escharoides_ means scab-like and refers to the
  cap which when freshly collected is minutely scaly and appears scabby.

  _Illustrations_: LH 163; WD 67¹.


(iv) Fungi of beds of herbaceous plants

Beds of herbaceous plants provide protection for many small agarics and
collecting can be conducted in these situations from spring to early
winter. The buffered environments under the herbs is humid and
relatively still, and this allows the development of the small often
delicate fruit-bodies of certain species to continue unimpeded.
Nettle-beds or mixtures of nettle and dog’s mercury have very rich
floras under the shelter of their leaves and stems, either on the bare
soil or plant debris.


On herbaceous stems


~Coprinus urticicola~ (Berkeley & Broome) Buller

  _Cap_: width 4-7 mm. _Stem_: width 1 mm; length 10-15 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 76.

  Cap: white then greyish, globose at first and then expanding to become
  plane with upturned margin covered, at first, with scales from a veil
  which at the centre are white-tipped with ochre.

  Stem: white and slightly downy.

  Spore-print: brownish black.

  Spores: elliptic-ovoid, only slightly compressed with distinct
  germ-pore, dark brown under the microscope and 6-8 × 5 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: ellipsoid to pyriform and hyaline.

  Facial cystidia: elongate cylindric larger than marginal cystidia.


On bare soil


~Leptonia babingtonii~ (Bloxam) P. D. Orton

  _Cap_: 5-15 mm. _Stem_: width 1 mm; length 20-50 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 76.

  Cap: grey to sepia or greyish brown entirely scaly-hairy, at first,
  but then fibrillose.

  Stem: silvery grey to grey-sepia and silky fibrillose.

  Gills: greyish pink.

  Spore-print: greyish pink.

  Spores: very long, wavy angular in outline, very pale honey under the
  microscope and 14-20 × 7-9 µm.

  Marginal cystidia: club-shaped or balloon-shaped and hyaline.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  So very different to other species of _Leptonia_ is it that it should
  be classified in Dr. Pilát’s genus _Pouzaromyces_.


~Conocybe mairei~ Watling

  _Cap_: width 5-10 mm. _Stem_: width 1 mm; length 10-40 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: pale to deep ochraceous or buff, minutely tomentose.

  Stem: flexuous, whitish or very pale ochraceous.

  Gills: pale buff then ochraceous.

  Spore-print: ochraceous.

  Spores: medium sized, ellipsoid or slightly almond-shaped with small
  germ-pore and 6-8 × 3-4 µm in size.


~Flammulaster granulosa~ (J. Lange) Watling

  _Cap_: 4-15 mm. _Stem_: width 1 mm; length 10-25 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: ochraceous to date-brown, darker at the centre and granular scaly
  throughout.

  Stem: similarly coloured to the cap and similarly roughened, except
  for the slightly smoother paler apex.

  Spores: ellipsoid to almond-shaped, very pale brown under the
  microscope and 8-10 × 4-5 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: cylindric-wavy, hyaline.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  Depending on the herbaceous constituents the fungus-flora will vary.
  Certain species are found on all sorts of herbaceous debris, but
  others are much more specific to their substrate preferences. Beds of
  Butterbur, Coltsfoot or Impatiens are also good hunting places, as are
  beds of sedges in fenland. In many of these localities agarics with
  reduced fruit-bodies looking like disc-fungi are frequently seen. We
  have already discussed the specific requirements of certain species of
  _Marasmius_ (see p. 92).

[Illustration: Plate 76. Fungi of alder-carrs and from under herbaceous
plants]


(v) Fungi of moss-cushions

Many small species grow amongst moss cushions on tree trunks, tucked in
crevices in walls or on the tops of old buildings. However, there is one
genus of agarics, i.e. Galerina which is probably more typical than any
other of such situations. There are many members of this genus whose
small caps are found in the autumn pushing up through the moss plants.
Plate 78.


~Galerina hypnorum~ (Fries) Kühner

  _Cap_: width 4-6 mm. _Stem_: width 1 mm; length 20-40 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: hemispherical or bell-shaped, hygrophanous, orange-yellow,
  sand-colour, smooth and striate almost to the cap-centre.

  Stem: smooth and similarly coloured to the cap.

  Gills: yellow-tawny then rust-coloured, adnate emarginate, rather
  broad and somewhat distant.

  Flesh: thin, yellow-tawny and with a smell of new meal.

  Spore-print: rust-colour.

  Spores: medium-sized, almond-shaped, golden yellow under the
  microscope, slightly roughened and 10-11 × 6-7 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: flask-shaped or cylindrical with slight swelling at
  the apex.

  Facial cystidia: absent.


~Galerina mycenopsis~ (Fries) Kühner

  _Cap_: width 6-15 mm. _Stem_: width 1 mm; length 30-60 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: similarly coloured to _G. hypnorum_, but with a few white silky
  fibrils.

  Stem: coloured as the cap, but with white silky fibrils when young.

  Gills and flesh: as in _G. hypnorum_, but it has no smell.

  Spore-print: rust-colour.

  Spores: medium-sized, ellipsoid, pale golden yellow under the
  microscope, smooth and 9-11 × 5-6 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: club-shaped, cylindrical and with distinct rounded
  heads.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _General Information_: _G. mniophila_ (Lasch) Kühner is similar to or
  slightly larger than _C. mycenopsis_, but differs in its dull
  honey-coloured cap and stem, and distinctly roughened spores. _G.
  calyptrata_ P. D. Orton is small and has been long confused with _G.
  hypnorum_; it, however, is of a much brighter orange-colour, with
  distinct white fibrils on the cap and has spores which have a distinct
  envelope, sometimes separating as a loose covering. _G. vittaeformis_
  (Fries) Moser is a red-brown fungus with 2-spored basidia, facial
  cystidia, minutely hairy stem, and very rough spores; it grows in moss
  in pastures as well as on moss-cushions.


(vi) Heath and mountain fungi


(a) Moorland fungi


~Marasmius androsaceus~ (Fries) Fries

  Horse-hair toadstool

  _Cap_: width 5-15 mm. _Stem_: width 1 mm; length 30-60 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 77.

  Cap: whitish to pale smoke-brown with a distinct wine-coloured tinge,
  membranous, flattened, or umbilicate and radially wrinkled.

  Stem: thread-like, black or very dark brown, horny and usually
  springing from a black horse-hair-like mycelium.

  Gills: whitish or dirty flesh-colour, adnate and crowded.

  Flesh: white in the pileus and black in the stem.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium-sized, pip-shaped, not blueing in solutions containing
  iodine and measuring 7-9 × 3-4 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: oval or ellipsoid, covered on the upper half with
  small pimple-like projections.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  _General Information_: This fungus is common in troops from late
  summer until winter on dead and dying heather. It is also found in
  woods on leaves and twigs, particularly in plantations on conifer
  needles. It is easily recognised by the dark horse-hair-like stem
  which becomes bent and twisted on drying and the small, pinkish
  flesh-coloured cap. The word _androsaceus_ means, and refers to, the
  stem which resembles the tough and wiry fronds of some of the red
  algae, such as _Ahnfeldtia_ which is found around our sea-shores.

  _Illustrations_: LH 115; NB 47¹; WD 24⁴.


~Omphalina ericetorum~ (Fries) M. Lange

  _Cap_: width 5-20 mm. _Stem_: width 2 mm; length 10-20 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: variable in colour, straw-colour, cream-colour, bistre or grey,
  convex then flat or slightly depressed, radially grooved to the centre
  when moist; the margin is scalloped.

  Stem: slender, similarly coloured to the cap, except for a brownish
  wine-coloured zone at the very apex, thickened upwards and smooth with
  a white and woolly base.

  Gills: adnate to decurrent, white then cream-colour or yellowish,
  triangular in shape, very distant and often connected by veins.

  Flesh: pale cream-colour.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium sized, hyaline under the microscope, broadly ellipsoid,
  or pip-shaped, not becoming bluish grey in solutions of iodine, 8-10 ×
  5 µm in size.

  Marginal and facial cystidia: absent.

  _General Information_: This fungus is common and often in large troops
  on peaty ground in woods as well as in moorland and mountain regions.
  In mountains _O. ericetorum_ must be carefully distinguished from some
  of the truly mountain species of _Omphalina_ dealt with on p. 236. _O.
  wynniae_ (Berkeley & Broome) P. D. Orton is similar but pale
  lemon-yellow and is found on stumps of conifers. The word _ericetorum_
  refers to the habit of growing on heaths--_Erica_ is the Latin name
  for heath. In many books this same fungus is called _O. umbellifera_
  which reflects the shape of the cap--umbrella shaped.

  _Illustrations_: Hvass 116; LH 99; NB 85⁷; WD 29⁹.


~Entoloma helodes~ (Fries) Kummer

  _Cap_: width 25-75 mm. _Stem_: width 2-6 mm; length 25-55 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: finely or minutely velvety at centre, fibrillose or white silky
  as if frosted towards the margin, sepia or bistre, or mouse-grey,
  dull-coloured but with a hint of violaceous brown.

  Stem: equal or slightly thickened at the apex, sometimes club-shaped,
  thickened at the base, greyish brown and pale cream-colour at the
  base.

  Flesh: dark sepia in the cap, whitish in the stem and smelling
  strongly of meal.

[Illustration: Plate 77. Moorland fungi]

  Gills: white or whitish at first then dirty pinkish brown, adnate and
  emarginate.

  Spore-print: dull salmon-pink.

  Spores: medium to long, angular, ellipsoid-oblong, slightly
  cinnamon-colour under the microscope and 9-12 × 7-8 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: conspicuous, spindle or bottle-shaped and with
  subcapitate apex.

  Facial cystidia: absent.


~Hypholoma ericaeum~ (Fries) Kühner

  _Cap_: width 15-30 mm. _Stem_: width 4-7 mm; length 50-100 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: fleshy, convex, later becoming flattened but remaining slightly
  umbonate at the centre, viscid at first, smooth and shining when dry,
  bright reddish to sand-colour or brown.

  Stem: slender, yellow above, brown below, smooth and tough.

  Gills: adnate or adnexed, purplish black with a whitish margin and
  fairly crowded.

  Flesh: yellowish or red-brown in the stem.

  Spore-print: purple-brown.

  Spores: long, dark purple-brown, broadly ellipsoid and 12-15 × 7-9 µm
  in size.

  Marginal cystidia: cylindrical or flask-shaped.

  Facial cystidia: flask-shaped and filled with contents which become
  yellowish in solutions containing ammonia.


~Clavaria argillacea~ (Persoon) Fries

  _Fruit-body_: height 20-60 mm.

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: club-shaped, blunt or rounded at the apex, cylindrical or
  compressed and often grooved, yellow ochraceous or buff.

  Stem: distinct but short and yellowish.

  Flesh: yellowish.

  Spore-print: white.

  Spores: medium-sized, hyaline under the microscope, smooth and 10-11 ×
  5-6 µm in size.

  All these three species are typical of bare peaty soil, or moss
  covered peat amongst or around Heather or Ling (_Calluna vulgaris_)
  bushes.

[Illustration: Plate 78. Moorland, moss-cushion and mountain fungi]


(b) Mountain fungi and the so-called Basidiolichens


‘Basidiolichens.’ Plate 78.


  _Omphalina ericetorum_ (Fries) M. Lange has already been described (p.
  232): it grows on acidic soils and ascends into mountain areas where
  it frequently grows on algal scum which accumulates around _Sphagnum_
  plants.

  Under these conditions the algal cells enter the base of the fungus
  and grow in the cavity of the stem and amongst those hyphae which
  constitute the base. This association, however, appears to be much
  closer in the two lichens _Coriscium viride_ (Acharius) Vain and
  _Botrydina vulgaris_ Meneghini which have long been classified as
  species of lichen of unknown affinity because no perfect state was
  known. _Coriscium viride_ consists of blue-green overlapping plates or
  scales with narrow rounded often paler margins and which dry out
  greenish brownish grey. _Botrydina vulgaris_, in contrast, consists of
  dark green, gelatinous blobs drying out greenish brown.

  _Coriscium_ is now considered to be an association of an algae and a
  Basidiomycete, the latter being the agaric, _Omphalina hudsoniana_
  (Jennings) Bigelow, which resembles _O. ericetorum_ but for the
  pinkish coloured stem. _Botrydina_ may be a complex of several
  separate associations of an algae with different species of
  _Omphalina_. In the high mountains the association is with _O.
  luteovitellina_ (Pilát & Nannfeldt) M. Lange a small uniformly bright
  yellow agaric, whilst in _Sphagnum_ bogs it is with _O. sphagnicola_
  (Berkeley) Moser. _Myxomphalia maura_ (Fries) Hora, a fungus typical
  of burnt ground, is also reported to take up this association in
  lowland woods and _O. velutina_ (Quélet) Quélet appears to be capable
  of forming a loose relationship with algal cells also. This is a most
  interesting association and research work is still at an early stage.
  In the tropics and subtropical regions of the world, similar
  associations are found on rotten and decomposing trunks and stumps. In
  these examples the _Basidiomycetes_ are frequently fairy-clubs,
  particularly species of _Multiclavula_ (‘many small clubs’). A few
  species of this genus may be found also in North temperate woodlands.
  _Botrydina_ also grows in Europe with _Stereum fasciatum_ (Schw.)
  Fries and _Athelia viride_ (Bres.) Parm. (see p. 176), and _Odontia
  bicolor_ (Fries) Quélet is rarely collected without green algal cells
  buried in the thallus. Perhaps associations like this are much
  commoner than at first supposed. Probably the most remarkable of this
  group of poorly known organisms is _Cora pavonia_ (Sw.) Fries which
  produces masses of interlocking fans; it is tropical and found in
  Brazil.


Mountain fungi: general remarks

There are several groups of mountain fungi, some mycorrhizal formers,
some which prefer peaty soil and some which are associated with algae
forming a loose relationship--the Basidiolichens. When the mountain top
is covered with such dwarf willows as _Salix herbacea_ or _S.
reticulata_ the leaves are cast each year, woody tissue develops above
and below the ground; in fact all the processes taking place in our
familiar woodlands are also taking place in these communities, the only
difference being that the trees are dwarf. Indeed it looks quite odd to
see normal sized agarics growing amongst the woody stalks of dwarf
trees, the leaves of which are often one-tenth the size of the
fruit-bodies, but this is what happens.

The mycorrhizal formers in these conditions include species of _Russula_
(e.g. _Russula alpina_ Möller & Schaeffer, _R. xerampelina_ var.
_pascua_ Favre (see p. 45)), _Lactarius_ (e.g. _Lactarius lacunarum_
Hora see p. 50), _Cortinarius_ (e.g. _C. anomalus_ (Fries) Fries see p.
42) and _Amanita_ (e.g. _Amanita nivalis_ Greville see p. 56).
Subterranean fungi are also found, e.g. _Elaphomyces_ see p. 244, and,
just as woodlands, valley bottoms have a saprophytic ground flora of
toadstools so do the high mountain ‘woods’, and many familiar fungi of
the lowerland areas are to be found there also, e.g. _Mycena
epipterygia_ (Fries) S. F. Gray, _Mycena olivaceo-marginata_ (Massee)
Massee (see p. 88.)

The barer tops of the mountains, where large areas of moss are only to
be found, support species of _Hygrocybe_, e.g. _H. lilacina_
(Laestadius) Moser and _H. subviolacea_ (Peck) P. D. Orton & Watling
(see p. 97).

In the moist atmosphere on the hills in western Scotland, woodland-like
floras containing familiar flowering plants are found on the mountain
sides often much higher than in central Scotland. It is in such
communities that typical woodland fungi are also to be found, e.g.
_Nolanea cetrata_ (Fries) Kummer (see p. 101).


(vii) Sand-dune fungi


~Inocybe dunensis~ P. D. Orton

  _Cap_: width 27-75 mm. _Stem_: width 4-10 mm; length 35-80 mm.

  _Description_:

  Cap: convex then expanded, usually broadly umbonate, pale or dirty
  ochraceous paler at the margin, reddish brown at the centre, smooth,
  radially fibrillose towards the margin and sometimes showing the
  remains of a pale greyish buff veil.

  Stem: equal with marginate or rounded bulb at the base, white or
  whitish, then becoming discoloured pinkish or brownish, powdered with
  white, at first, but finally silky.

  Gills: free or narrowly adnate, subcrowded, whitish then clay-buff,
  finally snuff-brown with whitish edge.

  Flesh: white or whitish, tinted ochraceous or dirty pinkish and with
  strong smell of rancid oil.

  Spore-print: snuff-brown.

  Spores: medium to long, ellipsoid-oblong, indistinctly nodulose or
  wavy-angular and 9-12 × 6-7 µm in size.

  Facial cystidia: swollen, spindle-shaped with short, broad neck,
  thick-walled and crested with crystals.

  Marginal cystidia: spindle-shaped and crested with crystals.

  _General Information_: This fungus is often buried to half-way in the
  sand of slacks near dwarf willows (_Salix_ spp.). Three other species
  of _Inocybe_ grow in dune-slacks _I. halophila_ Heim, _I. serotina_
  Peck and _I. devoniensis_ P. D. Orton, but all differ in their spores
  being smooth and elongate-cylindric. _Astrosporina_, a name referring
  to the shape of the spore, has been considered a genus of agarics in
  its own right and to this group _I. dunensis_ would belong. However,
  as the members show the same range of characters as those species with
  the smooth spores it seems unnecessary to split _Inocybe_ into two.
  The cystidia in many species are unusual, being crested with a bundle
  of crystals which have been reported as being calcium oxalate,
  although even the simplest school-laboratory tests have been rarely
  applied to them (see p. 84).

[Illustration: Plate 79. Sand-dune fungi]


~Psathyrella ammophila~ (Durieu & Léville) P. D. Orton

  Sand-dune brittle-cap

  _Cap_: width 20-40 mm. _Stem_: width 4-8 mm; length 40-80 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 79.

  Cap: semiglobate to convex, pale dingy clay-colour or dark tan to
  dirty brownish, non-striate, rather fleshy and usually sand covered.

  Stem: deeply rooting in sand and club-shaped towards the base,
  similarly coloured to the cap except for the whitish apex.

  Gills: adnate, subfuscous or dark dirt-brown.

  Flesh: dirty buff and with no distinct smell.

  Spore-print: pale snuff-brown with purplish flush.

  Spores: long, ovoid, yellowish-grey brown under the microscope with a
  distinct germ-pore and 10-12 × 7 µm in size.

  Marginal cystidia: balloon-shaped, obtuse or somewhat bottle-shaped
  and hyaline.

  Facial cystidia: sparse, similar to the marginal cystidia, voluminous.

  _General Information_: This is a very distinct fungus found amongst
  stems of Marram grass in sand-dune systems. At first sight it appears
  as if it is growing in the bare sand, but by careful excavation it
  usually is found attached to pieces of Marram grass, indeed the hyphae
  enter the roots of the grass, but apparently do not kill them.

  This fungus was first described in the genus _Psilocybe_ (see p. 114)
  because of its brownish purple spore-print, but the cap-surface is
  composed of rounded cells and so is related to all the other species
  of _Psathyrella_.

  _Psathyrella flexispora_ Wallace & P. D. Orton grows in similar
  habitats amongst _Ammophila_ and other seashore grasses. It is easily
  recognised by the chocolate, umber or date-brown cap and the peculiar
  shaped spores, which look as if they have been slightly twisted during
  their development.

  ~Stropharia coronilla~ (Fries) Quélet, resembling a little mushroom
  (i.e. _Agaricus_) is also found in sand-dune systems and, just as
  species of _Psathyrella_, it possesses purplish black spores. However,
  the cap is ochraceous yellow with a whitish margin formed of veil
  fragments. The stem is white becoming yellow with age and possesses a
  narrow, white striate ring. The spores are ellipsoid and measure 8-9 ×
  4-5 µm and it has filamentous cells in the cap. Unlike _P. ammophila_
  it is not confined to sand-dune systems but it is also to be found in
  pastures and on heaths.

[Illustration: Plate 80. Sand-dune fungi]


~Conocybe dunensis~ P. D. Orton

  Sand-dune brown cone cap.

  _Cap_: width 10-30 mm. _Stem_: width 2-4 mm; length 40-100 mm.

  _Description_: Plate 80.

  Cap: conical then conico-expanded, date-brown, dull sand-colour or
  dark liver-colour, drying buff or ochraceous, expallent, not or
  indistinctly striate when moist.

  Stem: whitish or pale ochraceous then darker ochraceous or dirty
  brownish from the base up, lower part whitish and buried in the sand.

  Flesh: thin and pale ochraceous.

  Gills: adnate, whitish but soon pale honey and finally rusty honey.

  Spore-print: rust-brown.

  Spores: long, ellipsoid or slightly amygdaliform, golden brown under
  the microscope with large germ-pore and 12-14 × 7-8 µm in size.

  Facial cystidia: absent.

  Marginal cystidia: capitate.

  _General Information_: _C. dunensis_ differs from _C. tenera_ in its
  dull colours (see p. 116) and habitat preferences. _Conocybe
  dunensis_, _Stropharia coronilla_, the two species of _Psathyrella_
  are all dull-coloured. However, in the sand-dunes colourful agarics
  are also found. The most common is _Hygrocybe conicoides_ (P. D.
  Orton) Orton & Watling; _Laccaria maritima_ (Theodowicz) Moser is
  indeed an unusual but rewarding find. ‘Lac’ as in _Laccaria_ is a
  red-brown resinous substrate produced by the lac-insect and resembles
  the cap colour of many species of the genus, including _L. maritima_,
  _L. laccata_ and _L. proxima_ (see p. 86). All these fungi were
  formerly placed in _Clitocybe_, but they differ in the warted or spiny
  spores which at maturity give the rather thick gills the appearance of
  being heavily talced. _L. maritima_ can be distinguished from all
  other species of Laccaria by the elongated spores which are minutely
  spiny and not strongly warted as in _L. laccata_. _Hygrocybe
  conicoides_ (P. D. Orton) Orton & Watling has a conical to
  conico-convex, acutely umbonate cap with wavy-lobed margin; it is
  scarlet or cherry-red, discolouring blackish with age or on bruising.
  The gills are at first chrome-yellow then become flushed red and the
  stem is yellow or greenish lemon becoming streaky blackish after
  handling. The spores are 10-13 × 4-5 µm in size and slightly French
  bean-shaped. It can be readily distinguished from close relatives,
  e.g. _H. conica_ (Fries) Kummer by the gills soon turning reddish, the
  reddish cap and the narrow spores.


(viii) Subterranean fungi


_General notes_

The adaptive habit of growing completely submerged beneath the surface
of the ground has developed in all the major groups of fungi. Thus the
simplest form related to the common bread-mould have taken up the
character just as certain relatives of the disc-fungi (discomycetes) and
of the flask-fungi (pyrenomycetes). In the higher fungi in several
foreign countries even agarics, polypores and stinkhorns have become
hypogeous, but in this country we have a very depauparate flora composed
of some twenty-eight species of false (Basidiomycete) truffle. The
following key may assist in identifying the different groups of
hypogeous fungi for some of these species are of commercial value and
includes the French or Perigord truffle, _Tuber melanospermum_ Vittadini
which is used as a constituent of Pâté de Foie Gras, and many of the
fungi used as poor quality substitutes. There is a long folk-history
surrounding truffles and they have been utilised in the production of
aphrodisiacs for centuries. Seeking them out was a difficulty and has
been overcome in different countries in different ways. Thus in
continental Europe, pigs have been used to sniff them out but on finding
them the pigs cannot eat the truffles because of a ring placed through
their nose. In Dorset a particular breed of dog was developed to do the
same job--the Dorset hounds.

  A simple key would read as follows:--

  1. Spores produced on basidia                                        2

     Spores produced in asci                                           4

  2. Chambers throughout the inner tissue containing spores of
     approximately the same age                                        3

     Chambers in the inner tissues containing spores found at different
     stages of development                                _Hymenogaster_

  3. Basidiospores brown or greenish brown under the microscope, and
     black in mass                                        _Melanogaster_

     Basidiospores colourless or pale honey colour under the microscope
     and ochraceous in mass                                 _Rhizopogon_

  4. Asci globose, irregularly arranged within the fruit-body and
     quickly breaking down to shed the spores              _Elaphomyces_

     Asci globose or club-shaped and arranged in fertile areas which
     do not rapidly break down to shed the spores    _Tuber_ & relatives


Basidiomycetes


~Rhizopogon roseolus~ (Corda) Fries

  Red truffle

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: globular to tubiform and up to 60 mm broad, partly covered
  in mycelial cords, dirty white, later reddish-tawny gradually reddish
  and finally olive-brown, it soon becomes tawny on bruising when fresh
  and young.

  Spores: medium sized, narrowly ellipsoid, smooth at first, hyaline
  then pale olive under the microscope and measuring 8-11 × 4 µm.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This fungus is not uncommon on the edges
  of paths, in pine woods just pushing up through the soil surface.


Ascomycetes


~Elaphomyces granulatus~ Fries

  Harts’ truffle

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: globose to ovoid, 20-40 mm broad, pale ochraceous, covered
  in small pyramidal warts, and when it is cut it shows three layers, an
  outer thin yellowish zone, an inner thicker compact white zone and
  within this a purplish black area full of spores separated into
  chambers by bands of sterile white tissue; the first two zones make up
  the ‘rind’.

  Spores: spherical, blackish brown, warty, 24-32 µm in diameter; eight
  contained in globose asci.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This fungus is not uncommon in the surface
  layers of pine woods at the junction of needle debris and mineral
  soil. _E. muricatus_ Fries is similar, but differs in the marbled
  flecked interior.


~Tuber aestivum~ Vittadini

  English truffle

  _Description_:

  Fruit-body: subglobose except for basal flattening, up to 80 mm broad,
  covered in 5-6-sided pyramidal scales, dark brown to violaceous, white
  then greyish brown within, separated by a network of veins radiating
  from the basal cavity.

  Spores: very large, ellipsoid, light or yellowish brown and ornamented
  with a prominent network, borne in two’s and sixes in subglobose asci
  and variable in size, 20-40 × 15-30 µm.

[Illustration: Plate 81. Subterranean fungi and fungus-parasites]

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This fungus is to be found buried in the
  surface layers of soil in beech woods. _T. rufum_ is smaller and
  smoother and the spores are not crested but simply minutely spiny.

  _Illustrations_: _R. luteolus_--Hvass 322; LH 215. _El.
  granulatus_--Hvass 325; LH 49. _T. aestivum_--LH 43. _Melanogaster
  variegatus_--LH 215 (see p. 243). _Hymenogaster tener_--LH 215 (see p.
  243).


(ix) Fungal parasites


~Nyctalis parasitica~ (Fries) Fries

  Pick-a-back-toadstool

  _Description_: Plate 81.

  Cap: bell-shaped then becoming expanded, silky dirty white, but
  gradually grey with a flush of lilac with age.

  Stem: slender, white and smooth except for the base.

  Gills: pallid but soon becoming brownish, adnate or adnate with tooth,
  thick and distant alternately long and short and contorted or united
  with age.

  Flesh: dark brown.

  Spore-print: buff.

  Spores: small, hyaline under the microscope, ovoid, 5-6 × 3-4 µm but
  usually replaced completely or in part by ovoid, smooth, thick-walled
  and pale brownish asexually produced spores (chlamydospores) measuring
  about 15 × 10 µm in size.

  _Habitat_ & _Distribution_: This fungus grows in clusters on old
  decaying specimens of various species of _Russula_ and _Lactarius_
  (Russulaceae)--see p. 45.

  _General Information_: _N. asterophora_ Fries is closely related and
  also grows on decaying specimens of various species of Russula,
  particularly _R. nigricans_ (Fries) Fries. It differs, however, in the
  cap being fawn-coloured and very mealy when touched; it is recognised
  by the poorly formed often developmentally hindered gills on which
  chlamydospores are formed. Unlike the smooth asexual spores in _N.
  parasitica_ this species has chlamydospores with conical, blunt
  humps--i.e. star-shaped; _asterophora_ in fact means ‘I bear stars’.
  These fungi have been associated by some mycologists with the common
  chanterelle (_Cantharellus cibarius_ Fries, see p. 162) in virtue of
  them possessing reduced fold-like gills. However, the fold-like gills
  are secondary in nature, correlated with the active production of
  chlamydospores and the suppression of the formation of basidiospores.
  The gills are not therefore of a primitive type. The genus _Nyctalis_
  is related to fungi such as _Tephrocybe palustris_ (Peck) Donk (see p.
  223).

  There are several rather uncommon ‘agaric-parasites’ of agarics or
  other higher fungi, e.g. _Volvariella surrecta_ (Knapp) Singer, but
  their formal description must be left to other more advanced texts.
  However, the intriguing bolete, _Boletus parasiticus_ Fries, which
  grows on _Scleroderma_ (earth-balls) in this country has been
  mentioned and figured previously (p. 35 & Plate 64). It is of interest
  to note that a close relative of _B. parasiticus_ in Japan lives on
  another group of Gasteromycetes.

  _Illustrations_: _N. parasitica_--F 11^{a}; LH 81; WD 25⁷. _N.
  asterophora_--LH 81; WD 25⁸.


General notes on Fungicoles

Many beginners are confused on finding specimens which, although
appearing agaric-like, are covered in long hairs or irregularly shaped
bumps. Indeed many of these abnormalities are true agarics attacked by
microscopic fungi, and I know of one textbook on mushrooms and
toadstools which includes such an abnormality amongst the discussion on
the normal fruit-bodies. Thus _Sporadinia grandis_ Link, which is a
primitive fungus, attacks many fungi reducing them to a grey velvety
mass of fungal filaments. Specimens of several species of _Mycena_ (p.
88) are common in autumn, covered in whiskers with small nobbles on the
top. These whiskers are produced by the parasitic _Spinellus
megalocarpus_ (Corda) Karsten, another primitive fungus--a phycomycete.

In some wet seasons the orange and green coloured _Lactarius deliciosus_
(Fries) S. F. Gray is to be found contorted and covered in small pinkish
to lilac pimples of the ascomycete _Byssonectria lactaria_ (Fries)
Petch, and other species of _Lactarius_ are attacked by _Byssonectria
viridis_ (Berkeley & Broome) Petch which converts the fruit-bodies into
a hardened mass of green tissue. In North America, species of
_Lactarius_ are frequently attacked by _Hypomyces lactifluorum_
(Schweintz) Tulasne and the whole fungus is reduced to a contorted
acidic-smelling mass of fungal tissue with vivid orange pimples or warts
on the outer surface. These parasitic fruit-bodies are eaten as a
delicacy in their own right whereas the same consumer will be less
enthusiastic about eating the same agaric before it is so deformed.

Boletes particularly _B. subtomentosus_ Fries, _B. chrysenteron_ St
Amans and _B. edulis_ Fries are frequently converted into yellow powdery
masses due to the production of asexual spores of the fungus _Sepedonium
chrysospermum_ Fries; the sexual stage occurs on the remains after they
have collapsed into the soil surface--this stage is called _Apiocrea
chrysosperma_ (Tulasne) Sydow. Several closely related fungi in the
genus _Hypomyces_ also attack agarics.

The yellow pustules found on the spore-bearing surface of the birch
polypore _Piptoporus_ (p. 142) is _Hypocrea pulvinata_ Fuckel; it is
only one of several lower fungi which grow on bracket fungi. The genus
_Cordyceps_ has been mentioned previously (p. 206) and in the discussion
it was indicated that certain hypogeous fungi are attacked by members of
this genus.

White gelatinous pustules found amongst the fruit-bodies of _Stereum
sanguinolentum_ (p. 176) have a hard white centre. On examination these
‘nuclei’ are aborted structures of the stereum covered in the
jelly-fungus _Tremella encephala_ Persoon. This fungus is apparently
parasitic; it is closely related to _Tremella foliacea_ and _T.
mesenterica_ described on page 184.




G. APPENDIX


(i) Species list of specialised habitats


_INTRODUCTION_

Although some fungi prefer one type of woodland more than another many
fungi are less specialised and may be found in all kinds of woods.
Indeed many fungi which we usually associate with a woodland fungus
flora can also be commonly seen in pastures and gardens, e.g. _Laccaria
laccata_ (Fries) Cooke, _Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca_ (Fries) Maire.

It is useful to consider the fungi of different woodland types
separately, but this in some cases is very difficult because some
species are not exclusive; indeed some species may grow in completely
contrasting habitats, e.g. _Amanita muscaria_ (Fries) Hooker in both
birch and conifer woods, or on contrasting substrates, e.g. _Fomes
fomentarius_ (Fries) Kickx on birch in Scotland and beech on the
continent of Europe. The picture becomes even more complex because
frequently woods, in fact, often include several tree species growing in
close proximity and it is then difficult to draw connections between a
fungus and the tree with which it is truly growing--we know little or
nothing except for mycorrhizal fungi, why certain fungi prefer certain
habitats.

A parallel example is that phenomenon seen in certain polypores which
only attack twigs or branches and not stumps or trunks, whilst others
grow exclusively on stumps. We know little of the reasons for these
demarcations, even when they occur within the same host. Mycology,
therefore, offers to the beginner and the professional many
opportunities in physiology and ecology.

In grassland areas it is difficult to know where to draw the line
between one plant-community and another when listing species, for
although ecologically distinct both would come under the name grassland.
In the field, however, this is often very obvious and there is little
doubt that fungi can give just as accurate an indication as to the
soil-type, as many mosses or vascular plants. In sand-dune systems, the
mobile dunes offer a different ecological niche to that of the fixed
dunes which in many ways resemble grasslands. Thus although the lists
below are split into easily manageable units, some flexibility must
still be allowed. It is meant only as a guide--and will differ in some
cases from one place to another, even within the British Isles.


=General Woodland=

  _Agaricus silvicola_ (Vitt.) Peck
  _Amanita citrina_ S. F. Gray
  _A. excelsa_ (Fries) Kummer
  _A. rubescens_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _A. vaginata_ (Fries) Vittadini
  _Boletus calopus_ Fries
  _B. erythropus_ (Fries) Secretan
  _B. piperatus_ Fries
  _Cantharellus infundibuliformis_ Fries
  _Clitocybe clavipes_ (Fries) Kummer
  _C. fragrans_ (Fries) Kummer
  _C. nebularis_ (Fries) Kummer
  _C. odora_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Collybia butyracea_ (Fries) Kummer
  _C. confluens_ (Fries) Kummer
  _C. dryophila_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Hebeloma crustuliniforme_ (St Amans) Quélet
  _Hygrocybe strangulatus_ (Orton) Moser
  _Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca_ (Fries) Maire
  _Inocybe eutheles_ (Berkeley & Broome) Quélet
  _I. fastigiata_ (Fries) Quélet
  _I. geophylla_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Laccaria laccata_ (Fries) Cooke
  _Lactarius mitissimus_ (Fries) Fries
  _L. piperatus_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _L. subdulcis_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _Limacella glioderma_ (Fries) Maire
  _Mycena filopes_ (Fries) Kummer
  _M. galopus_ (Fries) Kummer
  _M. pura_ (Fries) Kummer
  _M. sanguinolenta_ (Fries) Kummer
  _M. vitilis_ (Fries) Quélet
  _Paxillus involutus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Ripartites tricholoma_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Russula adusta_ (Fries) Fries
  _R. atropurpurea_ (Krombholz) Britz.
  _R. delica_ Fries
  _R. foetens_ (Fries) Fries
  _R. nigricans_ (Mérat) Fries
  _R. ochroleuca_ (Secretan) Fries
  _R. xerampelina_ (Secretan) Fries
  _Tricholoma agyraceum_ (St Amans) Gillet
  _T. orirubens_ Quélet
  _T. saponaceum_ (Fries) Kummer
  _T. sciodes_ (Secretan) Martin
  _T. terreum_ (Fries) Kummer
  _T. virgatum_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Tylopilus felleus_ (Fries) Karsten

  _Hydnum repandum_ Fries

  _Phallus impudicus_ Persoon
  _Scleroderma citrinum_ Persoon
  _S. verrucosum_ Persoon

  _Leotia lubrica_ Persoon
  _Microglossum viride_ (Fries) Gillet


On wood

  _Armillaria mellea_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Crepidotus variabilis_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Hypholoma fasciculare_ (Fries) Kummer
  _H. sublateritium_ (Fries) Quélet
  _Pluteus cervinus_ (Fries) Kummer

  _Calocera cornea_ (Fries) Fries
  _Coriolus versicolor_ (Fries) Quélet
  _Merulius tremellosus_ Fries
  _Schizophyllum commune_ Fries
  _Stereum hirsutum_ (Fries) Fries
  _S. rugosum_ (Fries) Fries

  _Lycoperdon pyriforme_ Persoon

  _Coryne sarcoides_ (S. F. Gray) Tulasne
  _Cudoniella acicularis_ (Fries) Schroeter
  _Nectria cinnabarina_ (Fries) Fries
  _Xylosphaera hypoxylon_ Dumortier
  _X. polymorpha_ (Mérat) Dumortier


Conifer Woods

characterised by species of _Suillus_, _Chroogomphus_, _Gomphidius_,
several _Lactarius_ and _Russula_ spp.

  _Agaricus sylvatica_ Secretan
  _Amanita porphyria_ (Fries) Secretan
  _Boletus badius_ Fries
  _B. pinicola_ Venturi
  _Chroogomphus rutilus_ (Fries) O. K. Miller
  _Clitocybe flaccida_ (Fries) Kummer
  _C. langei_ Hora
  _Collybia distorta_ (Fries) Quélet
  _Cortinarius callisteus_ (Fries) Fries
  _C. gentilis_ (Fries) Fries
  _C. mucosus_ (Fries) Kickx
  _C. pinicola_ P. D. Orton
  _C. sanguineus_ (Fries) Fries
  _C. semisanguineus_ (Fries) Gillet
  _Cystoderma amianthinum_ (Fries) Fayod
  _Gomphidius glutinosus_ (Fries) Fries
  _G. maculatus_ Fries
  _G. roseus_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Hygrophorus hypothejus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Hypholoma marginatum_ (Fries) Schroeter
  _Inocybe calamistrata_ (Fries) Gillet
  _Lactarius camphoratus_ (Fries) Fries
  _L. deliciosus_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _L. helvus_ (Fries) Fries
  _L. rufus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Leccinum vulpinum_ Watling
  _Marasmius androsaceus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Mycena adonis_ (Fries) S. F. Gray (= _Hemimycena_)
  _M. amicta_ (Fries) Quélet
  _M. capillaripes_ Peck
  _M. coccinea_ Quélet
  _M. rubromarginata_ (Fries) Kummer
  _M. vulgaris_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Nolanea cetrata_ (Fries) Kummer
  _N. cuneata_ Bresadola
  _Rozites caperata_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Russula caerulea_ Fries
  _R. decolorans_ (Fries) Fries
  _R. emetica_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _R. erythropus_ Peltereau
  _R. nauseosa_ (Secretan) Fries
  _R. obscura_ Romell
  _R. paludosa_ Britz.
  _R. queletii_ Fries
  _R. sardonia_ Fries
  _Tricholoma albobrunneum_
  _T. flavovirens_ (Fries) Lundell
  _T. focale_ (Fries) Ricken
  _T. imbricatum_ (Fries) Kummer
  _T. vaccinum_ (Fries) Kummer

  _Ramaria ochraceo-virens_ (Jungh.) Donk
  _R. invallii_ (Cotton & Wakef.) Donk
  _Sarcodon imbricatum_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Sparassis crispa_ (Wulfen) Fries
  _Thelephora palmata_ (Bulliard) Patouillard
  _T. terrestris_ Fries

  _Geastrum pectinatum_ Persoon


Hypogeous

  _Rhizopogon luteolus_ Fries
  _Elaphomyces granulatus_ Fries
  _E. muricatus_ Fries


On cones

  _Baeospora myosura_ (Fries) Singer
  _Strobilurus esculentus_ (Wulf. ex Fr.) Singer
  _S. stephanocystis_ (Hora) Singer
  _S. tenacellus_ (Fries) Singer

  _Auriscalpium vulgare_ S. F. Gray


On conifer wood

  _Gymnopilus penetrans_ (Fries) Murrill
  _Hypholoma capnoides_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Mycena alcalina_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Lentinus tigrinus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Paxillus atrotomentosus_ (Fries) Fries
  _P. panuoides_ (Fries) Fries
  _Pholiota flammans_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Pleurotellus porrigens_ (Fries) Singer (= _Pleurocybella_)
  _Pluteus atromarginatus_ Kühner
  _Tricholompsis rutilans_ (Fries) Singer
  _Xeromphalina campanella_ (Fries) Maire

  _Calocera viscosa_ (Fries) Fries
  _Dacrymyces stillatus_ Nees ex Fries
  _Pseudohydnum gelatinosum_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Gloeophyllum sepiarium_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Heterobasidion annosum_ (Fries) Brefeld
  _Hirschioporus abietinus_ (Fries) Donk
  _Laetiporus sulphureus_ (Fries) Murrill
  _Phaeolus schweinitzii_ (Fries) Patouillard
  _Stereum sanguinolentum_ (Fries) Fries
  _Tremella encephala_ Persoon
  _T. foliacea_ (Persoon) Persoon
  _Tyromyces stipticus_ (Fries) Kotlaba & Pouzar


Deciduous Woods General

  _Amanita fulva_ Secretan
  _A. inaurata_ Secretan
  _A. virosa_ Secretan
  _Boletus edulis_ Fries
  _B. chrysenteron_ St Amans
  _B. luridus_ Fries
  _B. subtomentosus_ Fries
  _Collybia peronata_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Lactarius vellereus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Russula cyanoxantha_ (Secretan) Fries
  _R. grisea_ (Secretan) Fries
  _R. heterophylla_ (Fries) Fries
  _R. lutea_ (Fries) Fries
  _R. ochroleuca_ (Secretan) Fries
  _Tricholoma album_ (Fries) Kummer
  _T. columbetta_ (Fries) Kummer
  _T. saponaceum_ (Fries) Kummer
  _T. sulphureum_ (Fries) Kummer

  _Cantharellus cibarius_ Fries
  _Clavulina cinerea_ (Fries) Schroeter
  _C. cristata_ (Fries) Schroeter
  _Hydnum repandum_ Fries

  _Geastrum rufescens_ Persoon
  _Lycoperdon perlatum_ Persoon

  _Helvella crispa_ Fries
  _H. elastica_ (St Amans) Boudier
  _H. lacunosa_ Fries
  _Disciotis venosa_ (Persoon) Boudier
  _Paxina acetabulum_ (St Amans) Kuntze
  _Peziza badia_ Mérat
  _P. succosa_ Berkeley


On wood

  _Coprinus disseminatus_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _C. micaceus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Crepidotus mollis_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Galerina mutabilis_ (Fries) P. D. Orton
  _Gymnopilus junonius_ (Fries) P. D. Orton
  _Mycena galericulata_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _Oudemansiella radicata_ (Fries) Singer
  _Pholiota squarrosa_ (Fries) Kummer
  Pleurotoid fungi (see p. 74)
  _Psathyrella candolleana_ (Fries) R. Maire
  _P. hydrophilum_ (Mérat) Maire

  _Coniophora puteana_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Meripilus giganteus_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Tremella mesenterica_ Hooker


Beech Woods

  _Amanita citrina var alba_ Gillet
  _Boletus edulis_ Fries
  _B. satanus_ Lenz
  _Collybia fuscopurpurea_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Coprinus picaceus_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _Cortinarius pseudosalor_ J. Lange
  _C. bolaris_ (Fries) Fries
  _Hygrophorus chrysaspis_ Métrod
  _Laccaria amethystea_ (Mérat) Murrill
  _Lactarius blennius_ (Fries) Fries
  _L. pallidus_ (Fries) Fries
  _L. tabidus_ Fries
  _Marasmius cohaerens_ (Fries) Cooke & Quélet
  _M. wynnei_ Berkeley & Broome
  _Mycena capillaris_ (Fries) Kummer (on leaves)
  _M. pelianthina_ (Fries) Quélet
  _Russula alutacea_ (Fries) Fries
  _R. fellea_ (Fries) Fries
  _R. lepida_ Fries
  _R. mairei_ Singer
  _R. virescens_ (Zantedschi) Fries
  _Tricholoma ustale_ (Fries) Kummer

  _Clavariadelphus pistillaris_ (Fries) Donk
  _Geaster triplex_ Jungh
  _G. fimbriatum_ Fries


Hypogeous

  _Melanogaster variegatus_ Vittadini
  _Tuber aestivum_ Vittadini


On wood

  _Oudemansiella mucida_ (Fries) Höhnel
  _O. radicata_ (Fries) Singer
  _Panus torulosus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Pholiota adiposa_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Stropharia squamosa_ (Fries) Quélet

  _Bjerkandera adusta_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Datronia mollis_ (Fries) Donk
  _Hiericium coralloides_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _Lentinellus cochleatus_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Pseudotrametes gibbosa_ (Fries) Bond. & Singer

  _Bulgaria inquinans_ Fries (a large dark brown, gelatinous
  discomycete)

  Several pyrenomycetes are recorded and dealt with by J. Webster in a
  popular account published in _The Naturalist_, London 1953, pp. 1-16.


Birch Woods

  _Amanita crocea_ (Quélet) Kühner & Romagnesi
  _Boletus edulis_ Fries
  _Cortinarius armillatus_ (Fries) Fries
  _C. crocolitus_ Quélet
  _C. hemitrichus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Lactarius glaucescens_ Crossland
  _L. glyciosmus_ (Fries) Fries
  _L. lacunarum_ Hora
  _L. torminosus_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _L. turpis_ (Weinm.) Fries
  _L. uvidus_ (Fries) Fries
  _L. vietus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Leccinum holopus_ (Rostkovius) Watling
  _L. roseofractum_ Watling
  _L. scabrum_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _L. variicolor_ Watling
  _L. versipellis_ (Fries & Hök) Snell
  _Russula aeruginea_ Lindblad ex Fries
  _R. betularum_ Hora
  _R. claroflava_ Grove
  _R. gracillima_ J. Schaeffer
  _R. nitida_ (Fries) Fries
  _R. pulchella_ Borszczow
  _R. versicolor_ J. Schaeffer
  _Tricholoma fulvum_ (Fries) Saccardo


On wood

  _Fomes fomentarius_ (Fries) Kickx
  _Lenzites betulina_ (Fries) Fries
  _Piptoporus betulinus_ (Fries) Karsten


Oak Woods

  _Amanita phalloides_ (Fries) Secretan
  _Boletus albidus_ Rocques
  _B. appendiculatus_ Fries
  _B. pulverulentus_ Opatowski
  _B. reticulatus_ Boudier
  _B. versicolor_ Rostkovius
  _Gyroporus castaneus_ (Fries) Quélet
  _Hygrophorus eburneus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Lactarius chrysorheus_ Fries
  _L. quietus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Leccinum quercinum_ (Pilát) Green & Watling
  _Russula vesca_ Fries
  _Tricholoma acerbum_ (Fries) Quélet


Hypogeous

  _Hymenogaster tener_ Berkeley & Broome


On wood

  _Mycena inclinata_ (Fries) Quélet
  _Psathyrella obtusata_ (Fries) A. H. Smith

  _Daedalea quercina_ Persoon
  _Fistulina hepatica_ Fries
  _Hymenochaete rubiginosa_ (Fries) Léville
  _Peniophora quercina_ (Fries) Cooke
  _Inonotus dryadeus_ (Fries) Murrill
  _Stereum gausapatum_ (Fries) Fries


Specific Tree Species


Alder

  _Lactarius obscuratus_ (Lasch) Fries
  _Naucoria escharoides_ (Fries) Kummer
  _N. scolecina_ (Fries) Quélet


On wood

  _Clavariadelphus fistulosus_ var. _contorta_ (Fries) Corner
  _Exidia glandulosa_ (St Amans) Fries
  _Inonotus radiatus_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Plicaturiopsis crispa_ (Fries) Reid


Ash


On wood

  _Inonotus hispidus_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Daldinia concentrica_ (Fries) Cesati & de Notaris


Elder


On wood

  _Hirneola auricula-judae_ (St Amans) Berkeley
  _Hyphodontia sambuci_ (Fries) J. Eriksson


Elm


On wood

  _Lyophyllum ulmarius_ (Fries) Kühner
  _Rhodotus palmatus_ (Fries) Maire
  _Volvariella bombycina_ (Fries) Singer
  _Rigidoporus ulmarius_ (Fries) Imaz


Hazel

  _Lactarius pyrogalus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Leccinum carpini_ (R. Schulzer) Reid


On wood

  _Hymenochaete corrugata_ (Fries) Léville

  _Sarcoscypha coccinea_ (Fries) Lambotte (red discomycete occurring in
  early spring)


Hawthorn

  _Entoloma clypeatum_ (Fries) Kummer


On wood

  _Pholiota squarrosa_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Phellinus pomaceus_ (Persoon) Maire
  _Stereum purpureum_ (Fries) Fries


Hornbeam

  _Lactarius circellatus_ Fries
  _Leccinum carpini_ (R. Schulzer) Reid


Poplar

  _Lactarius controversus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Leccinum aurantiacum_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _L. duriusculum_ (Schulzer) Singer
  _Mitromorpha hybrida_ (Fries) Léville


On wood

  _Agrocybe cylindracea_ (Fries) Maire
  _Pholiota destruens_ (Brondeau) Gillet
  _Bjerkandera fumosa_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Oxyporus populinus_ (Fries) Donk


Willow

  _Hebeloma leucosarx_ P. D. Orton
  _H. mesophaeum_ (Persoon) Quélet
  _H. testaceum_ (Fries) Quélet
  _Lactarius lacunarum_ Hora


On wood

  _Daedaleopsis rubescens_ (Fries) Schroeter
  _Pluteus salicinus_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Phellinus igniarius_ (Fries) Quélet
  _Trametes suaveolens_ (Fries) Fries


Grasslands

  _Agaricus arvensis_ Secretan
  _A. campestris_ Fries
  _A. macrosporus_ (Moëller & Schaeffer) Pilát
  _Agrocybe semiorbicularis_ (St Amans) Fayod
  _Calocybe gambosum_ (Fries) Singer
  _C. carneum_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Cantharellula umbonata_ (Fries) Singer
  _Clitocybe dealbata_ (Fries) Kummer
  _C. ericetorum_ Quélet
  _C. rivulosa_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Clitopilus prunulus_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Dermoloma atrocinereum_ (Fries) P. D. Orton
  _D. cuneifolium_ (Fries) Singer
  _Entoloma porphyrophaeum_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Hygrocybe aurantiosplendens_ R. Haller
  _H. berkeleyi_ (P. D. Orton) Orton & Watling
  _H. chlorophana_ (Fries) Karsten
  _H. coccinea_ (Fries) Kummer
  _H. conica_ (Fries) Kummer
  _H. calyptraeformis_ (Berkeley & Broome) Fayod
  _H. flavescens_ (Kauffman) Singer
  _H. marchii_ (Bresadola) Singer
  _H. nivea_ (Fries) Orton & Watling
  _H. nitrata_ (Pers.) Wunsche
  _H. obrussea_ (Fries) Fries
  _H. pratensis_ (Fries) Donk
  _H. psittacina_ (Fries) Wunsche
  _H. punicea_ (Fries) Kummer
  _H. reai_ (Maire) J. Lange
  _H. russocoriacea_ (Berkeley & Miller) Orton & Watling
  _H. splendidissima_ (P. D. Orton) Moser
  _H. unguinosa_ (Fries) Karsten
  _H. virginea_ (Fries) Orton & Watling
  _Lepiota procera_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _Lepista luscina_ (Fries) Singer
  _L. saeva (Fries)_ P. D. Orton
  _Leptonia griseocyanea_ (Fries) P. D. Orton
  _L. incana_ (Fries) Gillet
  _L. sericella_ (Fries) Barbier
  _L. serrulata_ (Fries) Kummer
  _Leucoagaricus naucina_ (Fries) Singer
  _Melanoleuca strictipes_ (Karsten) J. Schaeffer
  _Mycena flavoalba_ (Fries) Quélet
  _M. leptocephala_ (Fries) Gillet
  _M. fibula_ (Fries) Kühner
  _M. swartzii_ (Fries) A. H. Smith
  _Nolanea papillata_ Bresadola
  _N. sericea_ (Mérat) P. D. Orton
  _N. staurospora_ Bresadola
  _Psathyrella atomata_ (Fries) Quélet
  _Rhodocybe popinalis_ (Fries) Singer

  _Clavaria fumosa_ Fries
  _C. vermicularis_ Fries
  _Clavulinopsis corniculata_ (Fries) Corner
  _C. fusiformis_ (Fries) Corner
  _C. helvola_ (Fries) Corner

  _Bovista nigrescens_ Persoon
  _B. plumbea_ Persoon
  _Calvatia utriformis_ (Fries) Jaap
  _C. excipuliformis_ (Fries) Perdeck
  _Corynetes atropurpureus_ (Fries) Durand
  _Geoglossum cookeianum_ Nannfeldt
  _G. glutinosus_ Fries
  _G. nigritun_ Cooke
  _Trichoglossum hirsutum_ (Fries) Boudier


Lawns: Wasteland: Hedgerows

  _Agaricus hortensis_ (Cooke) Pilát
  _A. bisporus_ (J. Lange) Pilát
  _A. xanthodermus_ Genevier
  _Agrocybe dura_ (Fries) Singer
  _A. erebia_ (Fries) Kühner
  _A. praecox_ (Fries) Fayod
  _Coprinus comatus_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _C. acuminatus_ (Romagnesi) P. D. Orton
  _C. atramentarius_ (Fries) Fries
  _C. micaceus_ (Fries) Fries
  _C. plicatilis_ (Fries) Fries
  _Flammulaster granulosa_ (J. Lange) Watling
  _Lacrymaria velutina_ (Fries) Konrad & Maublanc
  _Lepiota cristata_ (Fries) Kummer
  _L. friesii_ (Lasch) Quélet
  _L. rhacodes_ (Vittadini) Quélet
  _Lepista nuda_ (Fries) Cooke
  _L. sordida_ (Fries) Singer
  _Lyophyllum connatum_ (Fries) Singer
  _L. decastes_ (Fries) Singer
  _Marasmius oreades_ (Fries) Fries
  _Melanophyllum echinatum_ (Fries) Singer
  _Mycena olivaceomarginata_ (Massee) Massee
  _M. fibula_ (Fries) Kühner
  _M. swartzii_ (Fries) A. H. Smith
  _Panaeolus fimicola_ (Fries) Quélet
  _P. foenisecii_ (Fries) Schroeter
  _Psathyrella gracilis_ (Fries) Quélet
  _P. squamosa_ (Karsten) Moser
  _Tubaria furfuracea_ (Fries) Gillet
  _T. pellucida_ (Fries) Gillet
  _Volvariella speciosa_ (Fries) Singer
  _Langermannia gigantea_ (Persoon) Lloyd

  _Aleuria aurantia_ (Fries) Fuckel
  _Morchella esculenta_ St Amans
  _Verpa conica_ Persoon


On herbaceous material

  _Coprinus urticicola_ (Berkeley & Broome) Buller
  _Panaeolus subbalteatus_ (Berkeley & Broome) Saccardo (in middens)

  _Crucibulum laeve_ (de Candolle) Kambly
  _Cyathus olla_ Persoon

  _Helicobasidium brebissonii_ (Desmazieres) Donk

  _Pistillaria micans_ (Persoon) Fries
  _P. quisquilliaris_ Fries (on bracken stems)


In greenhouses

  _Lepiota rhacodes_ var. _hortensis_ Pilát
  _Leucocoprinus cepaestipes_ (Fries) Patouillard
  _L. birnbaummii_ (Corda) Singer
  _L. brebissonii_ (Godey) Locquin
  _L. denudatus_ (Rabenhorst) Singer
  _L. lilacinogranulosus_ (Henning) Locquin
  _Psilocybe cyanescens_ Wakefield


Near out-buildings, stables, etc.

  _Anthurus archeri_ (Berkeley) E. Fischer
  _Asteroe ruber_ La Billardiere
  _Clathrus ruber_ Persoon
  _Lysurus australiensis_ Cooke & Massee
  _Queletia mirabilis_ Fries


Specialised habitats


(a) Dung

  _Bolbitius vitellinus_ (Fries) Fries
  _Conocybe coprophila_ (Kühner) Kühner
  _C. pubescens_ (Gillet) Kühner
  _C. rickenii_ (J. Schaeffer) Kühner
  _Coprinus cinereus_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _C. ephemeroides_ (Fries) Fries
  _C. macrocephalus_ (Berkeley) Berkeley
  _C. patouillardii_ Quélet
  _C. narcoticus_ (Fries) Fries
  _C. niveus_ (Fries) Fries
  _C. pellucidus_ Karsten
  _C. pseudoradiatus_ Kühner & Josserand
  _C. radiatus_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _Panaeolus semiovatus_ (Fries) Lundell
  _P. sphinctrinus_ (Fries) Quélet
  _Psathyrella coprobia_ (J. Lange) A. H. Smith
  _Psilocybe coprophila_ (Fries) Kummer
  _P. merdaria_ (Fries) Quélet
  _Stropharia semiglobata_ (Fries) Quélet

  Pyrenomycetes: Genera--_Sordaria_; _Podospora_; _Sporormia_;
  _Delitschia_.

  Discomycetes: Genera--_Cheilymenia_; _Ascobolus_; _Coprobia_.

  A key to the common dung fungi is given in _Bull. British Myc.
  Society_, 1968 by Watling & Richardson.


(b) Burnt patches

  _Aureoboletus cramesinus_ (Secretan) Watling
  _Coprinus angulatus_ Peck
  _C. lipophilus_ Romagnesi & Heim
  _Hebeloma anthracophilum_ Maire
  _Mycena leucogala_ (Cooke) Saccardo
  _Myxomphalia maura_ (Fries) Hora
  _Pholiota highlandensis_ (Peck) A. H. Smith
  _Psathyrella pennata_ (Fries) Pearson & Dennis
  _Tephrocybe anthracophila_ (Lasch) P. D. Orton
  _T. ambusta_ (Fries) Donk
  _T. atrata_ (Fries) Donk

  _Coltricia perennis_ (Fries) Murrill

  _Anthracobia macrocystis_ (Cooke) Boudier
  _A. maurilabra_ (Cooke) Boudier
  _A. melaloma_ (Fries) Boudier
  _Ascobolus carbonarius_ Karsten
  _Geopyxis carbonaria_ (Fries) Saccardo
  _Lamprospora astroidea_ (Hazslinzky) Boudier
  _Peziza echinospora_ Karsten
  _P. petersii_ Berkeley & Curtis
  _P. praetervisa_ Bresadola
  _P. violacea_ Persoon
  _Pyronema omphalodes_ (St Amans) Fuckel
  _Tricharia gilva_ Boudier
  _Trichophaea woolhopeia_ (Cooke & Phillips) Boudier


(c) Sand-dunes

  _Agaricus bernardii_ Quélet
  _A. devoniensis_ P. D. Orton
  _Conocybe dunensis_ P. D. Orton
  _Eccilia nigella_ Quélet
  _Hygrocybe conicoides_ P. D. Orton
  _Inocybe devoniensis_ P. D. Orton
  _I. dulcamara_ (Persoon) Kummer
  _I. dunensis_ P. D. Orton
  _I. halophila_ Heim
  _I. serotina_ Peck
  _Laccaria maritima_ (Theodowicz) Singer
  _Psathyrella ammophila_ (Durieu & Léville) P. D. Orton
  _Stropharia albocyanea_ (Desmariezes) Quélet

  _Geaster striatum_ de Candolle
  _Tulostoma brumale_ Persoon
  _Vascellum depressum_ (Bonorden) Smarda
  _Phallus hadriani_ Persoon
  _Corynetes arenarius_ (Rostrup) Durand
  _Peziza ammophila_ Durieu & Montagne


(d) Heathland

  _Cystoderma amianthinum_ (Fries) Fayod
  _Entoloma helodes_ (Fries) Kummer
  _E. madidum_ (Fries) Gillet
  _Galerina mniophila_ (Lasch) Kühner
  _G. praticola_ (Moëller) P. D. Orton
  _G. vittaeformis_ (Fries) Moser
  _Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca_ (Fries) Maire
  _Hygrocybe cantharella_ (Schweintz) Murrill
  _H. lacma_ (Fries) Orton & Watling
  _H. laeta_ (Fries) Kummer
  _H. ovina_ (Fries) Kühner
  _H. subradiata_ (Secretan) Orton & Watling
  _H. turunda_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Hypholoma ericaeum_ (Fries) Kühner
  _H. subericaeum_ (Fries) Kühner
  _Mycena epipterygia_ (Fries) S. F. Gray
  _M. olivaceomarginata_ (Massee) Massee
  _Omphalina velutina_ (Quélet) Quélet

  _Clavaria argillacea_ (Persoon) Fries

  _Lycoperdon foetidum_ Bonorden


(e) Marshes

  _Cortinarius uliginosus_ Berkeley
  _Coprinus friesii_ Quélet (on grass-stems)
  _C. martinii_ P. D. Orton (on _Juncus_)
  _Entoloma sericatum_ (Britz.) Saccardo (under birches)
  _Galerina jaapii_ Smith & Singer
  _G. paludosa_ (Fries) Kühner
  _G. sphagnorum_ (Fries) Kühner
  _G. tibiicystis_ (Atkinson) Kühner
  _Hygrocybe cantharella_ (Schweinitz) Murrill
  _H. coccineocrenata_ (P. D. Orton) Moser
  _H. turunda_ (Fries) Karsten
  _Hypholoma elongatum_ (Fries) Ricken
  _H. udum_ (Fries) Kühner
  _Laccaria proxima_ (Boudier) Patouillard
  _Marasmius menieri_ Boudier on _Typha_
  _Mycena belliae_ (Johnston) P. D. Orton on _Phragmites_
  _M. bulbosa_ (Cejp) Kühner on _Juncus_
  _M. integrella_ (Fries) S. F. Gray on _Cladium_
  _Omphalina ericetorum_ (Fries) Quélet Lange
  _O. oniscus_ (Fries) Quélet
  _O. philonotis_ (Lasch) Quélet
  _O. sphagnicola_ (Berkeley) Moser
  _Pholiota myosotis_ (Fries) Singer
  _Psathyrella sphagnicola_ (Maire) Favre
  _Tephrocybe palustris_ (Peck) Donk

  _Cudoniella clavus_ (Fries) Dennis
  _Mitrula paludosa_ Fries

  _Scutellinia scutellata_ (St Amans) Lambotte (with bright red disc and
  conspicuous brown hairs at the margin)

  _Vibrissea truncorum_ Fries (an orange-capped fungus with a black
  stem)


(f) Mountain tops

  _Amanita nivalis_ Greville
  _Cortinarius anomalus_ (Fries) Fries
  _C. cinnamomeus_ (Fries) Fries
  _C. tabularis_ (Fries) Fries
  _Russula alpina_ (Blytt) Moëller & Schaeffer
  _R. xerampelina_ var. _pascua_ Favre

(g) Mossy areas on the ground, rocks or stumps

  _Galerina hypnorum_ (Fries) Kühner
  _G. mniophila_ (Lasch) Kühner
  _G. mycenopsis_ (Fries) Kühner
  _G. praticola_ Moëller
  _C. unicolor_ (Sommerf.) Singer (often on wood)
  _Leptoglossum lobatus_ (Fries) Ricken
  _L. retirugis_ (Fries) Kühner & Romagnesi
  _Mycena corticola_ (Fries) Ricken (on wood)
  _M. hiemalis_ (Fries) Quélet (on wood)
  _M. olida_ Bresadola (on wood)
  _Omphalina rickenii_ Hora
  _Cyphella muscigena_ (Pers.) Fries
  _Cyphellostereum levis_ (Fries) Reid
  _Neottiella rutilans_ (Fries) Dennis


(h) Hypogeous fungi

  _Melanogaster variegatus_ Vittadini
  _Rhizopogon luteolus_ Fries
  _R. rubescens_ Tulasne
  _Elaphomyces granulatus_ Fries
  _E. muricatus_ Fries
  _Gyrocratera ploettneriana_ Hennings
  _Hydnotrya tulasnei_ Berkeley & Broome
  _Melanogaster variegatus_ Vittadini
  _Tuber aestivum_ Vittadini
  _T. rufum_ Fries


(i) On rotten fungi

  _Nyctalis asterophora_ Fries
  _N. parasitica_ (Fries) Fries
  _Collybia cirrhata_ (Fries) Kummer
  _C. cookei_ (Bresadola) J. D. Arnold
  _C. tuberosa_ (Fries) Kummer


(ii) Glossary of technical terms

_Specialised colours are placed in capitals_

  _Adnate_ (of the gills or tubes), broadly attached to the stem at
  least for one quarter of their length. See p. 267.

  _Adnexed_ (of the gills or tubes), narrowly attached to the stem by
  less than one quarter of their length. See p. 267.

  _Amygdaliform_ (of the spore), almond-shaped.

  _Amyloid_ (of the spore-walls, spore-ornamentation or hyphal walls),
  greyish or bluish or blackish violet in solutions containing iodine.

  _Apiculus_ (of the spore), the short peg-like structure at the basal
  end of the spore by which it is attached to the basidium. See Fig. 5,
  p. 15.

  _Arcuate-decurrent_ (of the gills or tubes), curved and extending down
  the stem. See p. 267.

  _Ascus_, a clavate to cylindrical or subglobose cell in which the
  (asco-) spores are borne, usually in eights.

  _Basidium_, a clavate or subcylindrical cell on which the (basidio-)
  spores are borne, externally on stalks. See Fig. 5, p. 15.

  _Cap_ (of the fruit-body), that structure which bears the
  spore-bearing layers beneath it (= pileus).

  _Caespitose_ (of the fruit-body), aggregated into tufts.

  _CINNAMON-BROWN_, the colour of cinnamon powder obtainable from the
  grocer.

  _Clavate_ (of the stem, or cystidia), club-shaped.

  _Convex_ (of the cap), curving outwards. See Plate 9, p. 55.

  _Cortex_ (of the cap or stem), outer layers of the tissue.

  _Cortina_, a cobweb-like veil at first connecting the margin of the
  cap and stem, but at maturity often only present as remnants on the
  stem and/or cap-margin. See p. 267.

  _Cystidium_, a differentiated terminal cell usually on the surface and
  edges of the cap, gill and stem: facial cystidia occurring on the
  gill-face: marginal cystidia occurring on the gill-margin. See Fig. 4,
  p. 15.

  _DATE-BROWN_, the colour of packed dates.

  _Decurrent_ (of the gills and tubes), with a part attached to and
  descending down the stem. See p. 267.

  _Deliquescent_ (of the gills, cap or entire fruit-body), changing into
  a liquid at maturity.

  _Depauperate_ poorly developed.

  _Depressed_ (of the cap), having the central portion sunken, and (of
  the tubes) sunken about the apex of the stem. See Plate 1, p. 29.

  _Dentate_ see toothed.

  _Distant_ (of the gills), greater than their own thickness apart.

  _Divergent_ (of the gill-trama in transverse longitudinal section),
  with the hyphae curving downwards and outwards on both sides of a
  central zone as if combed. See Fig. 9A, p. 17.

  _Ellipsoid_ (of the spores), elliptic in outline in all planes.

  _Emarginate_ (of the gills), notched near the stem. See Sinuate, p.
  263.

  _Excentric_ (of the cap), laterally placed on the stem.

  _Expallent_ (of the cap), becoming paler when drying.

  _Expanded_ (of the cap), opened out when mature. See Plate 10, p. 61.

  _Fibrillose_ (of the cap and stem-surfaces), almost smooth but for
  distinct parallel longitudinal filaments (fibrils).

  _Fleshy_ (of the fruit-body), of a rather soft consistency: readily
  decaying.

  _Floccose_, with loose, cottony surface; diminutive--flocculose.

  _Free_ (of the gills and tubes), not attached to the stem. See p. 267.

  _Frondose_ trees, broad-leaved trees.

  _Fruit-body_, the whole agaric (toadstool or mushroom, polypore,
  etc.), as usually understood.

  _Germ-pore_, a differentiated apical, usually thin-walled portion of
  the spore. See Fig. 5, p. 15.

  _Gill_, the structure on which the reproductive tissue is borne in
  agarics, resembling plates.

  _Globose_ (of the spore), round in outline in all planes.

  _Glutinous_ (of the cap or stem), provided with a sticky jelly-like
  coating.

  _Heteromerous_ (of the cap and stem-flesh), with discrete nests of
  rounded cells in a background of filamentous cells: characterises
  members of the Russulaceae. See Fig. 10B, p. 17.

  _Homoiomerous_ (of the cap and stem-flesh), not sharply differentiated
  into two types of cells, although some may be swollen: characterises
  agarics other than members of the Russulaceae. See Fig. 10A, p. 17.

  _Hygrophanous_ (of the cap), translucent when wet, opaque and often
  paler on drying.

  _Hymenium_, the superficial layer of cells in which basidia occur. See
  Fig. 9A-D, p. 17.

  _Hyaline_, appearing as if clear glass.

  _Hypogeous_, growing under ground.

  _Hypha_, a fungus filament composed of a chain of several cells;
  plural--hyphae; adjective--hyphal.

  _Inverse_, (of the gill-trama in transverse longitudinal section),
  with the hyphae curving upwards and outwards on both sides of a
  central zone. See Fig. 9B, p. 17.

  _Irregular_ (of the gill-trama in transverse longitudinal section),
  lacking any clear pattern as to hyphal arrangement. See Fig. 9D, p.
  17.

  _Mealy_, covered in powdery granules, resembling meal.

  _Mycelium_, a mass of fungus-filaments (hyphae).

  _Mycorrhiza_, a symbiotic association of a fungus and the roots of a
  higher plant.

  _Non-amyloid_ (of the spore-wall, spore-ornamentation and hyphal
  walls), remaining uncoloured or becoming yellowish in solutions
  containing iodine.

  _OCHRACEOUS_, bright clay-colour: colour of ochre (yellow-brown).

  _OLIVACEOUS BROWN_, a dull clay-brown with an additional but distinct
  hint of dirty green.

  _Plano-convex_ (of the cap), regularly rounded although almost flat.
  See Plate 13, p. 67--adult fruit-body.

  _Pruinose_ (of the cap and stem-surfaces), finely powdered.

  _Pubescent_ (of the cap and stem-surfaces), with short, soft hairs.

  _Putrescent_ (of the fruit-body), soft and very easily decaying.

  _Pyriform_ (of the spore), pear-shaped.

  _Regular_ (of the gill-trama in transverse longitudinal section), with
  hyphae showing no distinct curvature and practically parallel to the
  gill-surfaces. See Fig. 9C, p. 17.

  _Remote_ (of the gills or tubes), separate from the stem by a zone of
  cap-flesh. See p. 267.

  _Resupinate_ (of the fruit-body), spore-bearing tissue facing outward
  and attached to support by what would have been the cap had the fungus
  been a normal agaric.

  _Ring_, a girdling veil on the stem. See p. 267.

  _Rugulose_ (of a surface), covered in small wrinkles.

  _RUST-BROWN_, the colour of rusty iron.

  _Saprophyte_ (of an organism), using dead material for active growth.

  _Scurfy_ (of the cap and stem surfaces), with small irregular loosely
  attached scales.

  _Sessile_ (of the fruit-bodies), lacking a stem.

  _Septate_ (of the structural units of the fruit-body), with
  cross-walls; septum--cross-wall.

  _Sinuate_ (of the gills), having a concave indentation of that part of
  the edge nearest the stem. See Plate 32, p. 111.

  _SNUFF-BROWN_, a dull dark clay-brown said to resemble the colour of
  snuff.

  _Spore-print_ (or deposit), the mass of spores obtained by allowing
  the fruit-body to discharge its spores at maturity.

  _Stem_ (of the fruit-body), that structure which supports the cap (=
  stipe).

  _Sterile_, a tissue or structure not involved in the reproductive
  process, or failing to take part.

  _Sterigma_, the point-like structure at the apex of the basidium
  actually bearing the spores.

  _Striate_ (of a surface), having minute furrows or lines.

  _Subdecurrent_ (of the gills or the tubes), having the gill-attachment
  extending slightly down the stem. See p. 267.

  _TAWNY_, sand-coloured.

  _Tomentose_ (of the cap and stem surfaces), densely matted and woolly.

  _Toothed_ (of the gills or cap-margin), as if with teeth (= dentate).

  _Trama_ (of the gills), the tissue between the layers bearing basidia
  (hymenia).

  _Umbilicate_ (of the cap), having a central, small depression. See p.
  267.

  _Umbonate_ (of the cap), provided with a broad, flattened, raised
  centre (the umbo).

  _Uncinate_ (of the gills), emarginate, but with a long descending
  decurrent tooth because the cap does not expand. See Plate 14, p. 69.

  _Veil_, a general term for the tissues which protect the whole or part
  of the developing fruit-body.

  _Viscid_ (of the cap or stem), very slippery to the touch.

  _Volva_, a persistent cup-like structure at the base of the stem. See
  p. 267.

  _Waxy_ (of the gills), lustrous because they are thick and watery.


_Illustrations_

Text-figures and line-drawings of the greater number of the fungi
mentioned in the text have been included in the book. It is impossible
to supply colour pictures of a high quality in a book such as this
without raising the price of the publication astronomically. The plates
in six easily obtainable popular books have been used to represent
whenever possible the fungus described in the text, as accurate colour
illustrations are very useful in identification. The titles of these
books have been abbreviated for clarity.


_Abbreviations for illustrations used throughout the text_

  F--Findlay, W. P. K. (1967), _Wayside and Woodland Fungi_, London.

  Hvass--Hvass, E. & H. (1961), _Mushrooms and Toadstools in Colour_,
  London.

  LH--Lange, M. & Hora, F. B. (1963), _Collins Guide to Mushrooms and
  Toadstools_, London.

  NB--Nicholson, B. E. & Brightman, F. H. (1966), _Oxford Book of
  Flowerless Plants_, Oxford.

  WD--Wakefield, E. & Dennis, R. W. G. (1950), _Common British Fungi_,
  London.

  Z--Zeitlmayr, L. (1968), _Wild Mushrooms_, London.


(iii) Fairy rings

  _Object_: To assess the annual radial growth of fairy-rings and to
  correlate this with any obvious environmental change.

  _Materials_: Graph and tracing papers, tape-measures, note-book,
  pencil and rule, small pieces of cane about four inches long and
  coloured dye (e.g. Eosin solution, Janus Green).

  _Method_: Select a fairy-ring on the school cricket pitch or hockey
  pitch, school lawn, local golf course or park at a time when the
  fruit-bodies are first visible. Carefully mark the centre of the ring
  by driving into the soil a piece of cane until the top is only just
  visible. Plot this point on graph paper and relate it to any prominent
  feature nearby, e.g. post, tree or hedge.

  Carry out weekly observations throughout the fruiting season plotting
  the individual fruit-bodies on tracing paper, which is trimmed so as
  to make a replica of the original graph-sheet. A small dab of coloured
  dye placed on a fruit-body will assist one in recognising fruit-bodies
  from previous observations. During the fruiting season observe and
  plot the zones of differently coloured vegetation--devise some method
  of describing (and measuring) these colours perhaps by comparison with
  a colour-chart, printed or hand prepared. Continue observations on the
  ring at monthly or fortnightly intervals after the disappearance of
  the fruit-bodies, and record subsequent changes in the vegetation for
  twelve months.

  This project can be continued for several years and for different
  species of fungus. Weather conditions may be noted simultaneously with
  the growth observations, or obtained from a reliable source of similar
  information close by. In this way not only is the increase in ring
  size measured but the results can be considered in the light of
  climatic data; fungal growth appears to be dependent on favourable
  weather conditions.


_Further experiments_:

  (i) Compare the effect that different species of agaric have on the
  same type of vegetation.

  (ii) Observe selected fairy-rings for several seasons then either
  apply fertilisers, particularly calcium-based fertilisers to the
  ring-area, or mow the vegetation. Note increase in fruit-body
  production, if any, changes in period of fructification or increase in
  rate of ring development.

  (iii) Prepare transects across the fairy-ring and observe the species
  of flowering plants and mosses present, the differences between
  species in the two stimulated zones, and the colonisation of the dead
  zone by annuals and later perennial grasses and herbs.

  (iv) To the soil from each zone apply simple soil-dilution
  plate-methods for the culture and isolation of soil fungi and
  bacteria. Compare the results with those obtained by similar methods
  from soil without the fairy-ring.


(iv) Development of the agaric fruit-body

In the soil or substrate the hyphae of agarics frequently grow in close
contact with each other, indeed the intertwining of such hyphae to form
small knots is common in many fungi. In these intertwining hyphae, those
close together divide and branch, later branching again to form a heap
of tissue. The fruit-body develops from, or within, this knot and at its
earliest stage is usually covered by loosely branched and irregularly
arranged hyphae. To the unaided eye the primordium, for this is what
such a structure or early beginning is called, appears to be enveloped
in a mass of pale hyphal strands, often giving the fruit-body a woolly
appearance when seated on the soil, wood, herbaceous debris, etc. If
more than one primordium develops in close proximity, usually all but
one abort early in development, or they remain checked in formation at
this stage until those close by have matured. Some species which grow on
wood are caespitose, that is clustered together, and in these cases all
or many more of the primordia develop fully and simultaneously.

Often it is possible to search and find these primordia in the fields
and woods, and if they are examined under the low-power of a microscope
it is possible to study how the fruit-body subsequently develops from
its small beginnings and the part played by the ring and volva in the
development determined. Thus the origin of the veil can be located, its
development followed as well as its disintegration. When the fungus is
grown in pure culture on sterile dung, or soil, or wood, or simply on
artificial media prepared in the laboratory the full sequence of events
can be more easily followed. This is how the professional mycologist
conducts his observations. By very careful studies it has been found in
recent years that the development of the fruit-body, the origin of the
gills, etc. can assist in the classification of the higher fungi. Thus
some species have no protective tissue around the developing gills
(gymnocarpic) whilst others have one or even two, simple or complex,
tissues around the developing gills or pores (hemiangiocarpic). It is
these tissues which give rise to the ring, volva, cortina, etc. This
most exciting part of the study of the higher fungi is illustrated in
the accompanying figures (Figs. 12 & 13) along with the various types
of gill-attachment mentioned in the text (Fig. 11 A-H). If the agaric
has two tissues surrounding it as the cap expands and matures, first the
outer tissue or skin breaks leaving pieces on the stem and/or cap and
then the second skin breaks as the cap expands still further. The last
skin leaves remnants on the stem and sometimes bits and pieces at the
cap margin. Only now can the agaric shed its spores from the fully
exposed gills.

[Illustration: Fig. 11

Fig. 12

Fig. 13

Fig. 14]


(v) References


A. Reference Texts

Some references have already been given on p. 264. Findlay, Hvass &
Hvass, Lange & Hora, Nicholson & Brightman, Wakefield and Dennis and
Zeitlmayr.

In addition to these the following texts are suggested:

  Henderson, D. M., Orton, P. D. & Watling, R. (1969). _British Fungus
  Flora: Agarics and Boleti: Introduction_, H.M.S.O., Edinburgh.

  Hennig, E. (1958-60). _Handbuch für Pilzfreunde_, Jena (in German).

  Haas, H. (1969). _The Young Specialist looks at Fungi_, London.

  Pilát, A. & Usak, O. (1951). _Mushrooms_, London.

  Pilát, A. & Usak, O. (1961). _Mushrooms and other fungi_, London.

  Ramsbottom, J. (1951). _Handbook of Larger fungi_, London.

  Ramsbottom, J. (1953). _Mushrooms and Toadstools_, New Naturalist,
  London.

  Romagnesi, H. (1963). _Petit Atlas des Champignons_, Bordas (in
  French).

  Smith, A. H. (1963). _Mushroom Hunters’ Field-guide_, Michigan.

  Wakefield, E. M. (1954). _Observer’s book of Common fungi_, London.

  Watling, R. (1970). _British Fungus Flora: Agarics & Boleti_, Part I,
  H.M.S.O., Edinburgh.


B. General Texts

  Talbot, P. M. B. (1971). _Principles of Fungal Taxonomy_, London.

  Webster, J. (1970). _Introduction to Fungi_, Cambridge.


C. Journals

  _Bulletin Trimestriel de la Société Mycologique de France_, Paris.
  (Official organ of the French Mycological Society.)

  _Coolia_, Leiden. (Official organ of the Dutch Mycological Society.)

  _Mycologia_, New York. (Official organ of the American Mycological
  Society.)

  _Schweizerische Zeitschrift für Pilzkunde._ (Official organ of the
  Swiss Mycological Society.)

  _Transactions of the British Mycological Society_, (Official organ of
  the British Society: Hon. Sec. Dr B. E. Wheeler, Imperial College of
  Science and Technology Field Station, Silwood Park, Sunninghill,
  Ascot, Berks, also publishes a Bulletin intended for the amateur.)


D. Advanced Texts

  Dennis, R. W. G., Orton, P. D. & Hora, F. B. (1960). _New Check List
  of British Agarics and Boleti_, suppl. Trans. British Mycological Soc.

  Moser, M. (1967). _in Gams Kleine Kryptogamenflora_, Band IIb
  Stuttgart (in German).

  Kühner, R. & Romagnesi, H. (1953). _Flore Analytique des Champignons
  Supérieurs de France_, Paris (in French).

  Rea, C. (1922). _British Basidiomycetae_, Cambridge.

  _Revue de Mycologie_ (journal) Paris (in French).




INDEX


Numbers in bold italics refer to pages with illustrations.


_Latin Names_

  Agaricales 21

  _Agaricus_ 23, 240

  _Agaricus arvensis_ ~108~, Plate 31 (109)
    _bisporus_ ~133~, Plate 43 (134)
    _campestris_ ~108~, Plate 31 (109)
    _hortensis_ 133, Plate 43 (134)
    _xanthodermus_ ~108~

  _Agrocybe_ 23

  _Aleurodiscus amorphus_ Plate 59 (177)

  _Aleuria aurantia_ 198, Plate 67 (199)

  _Alnicola_ 226

  _Amanita_ 24, 56, 57, 100, 237

  _Amanita caesarea_ 56
    _citrina_ 56, ~57~
    _citrina_ var. _alba_ 56
    _excelsa_ ~57~
    _fulva_ 56, 57, ~58~
    _muscaria_ ~54~, Plate 9 (55), 56, 57, 249
    _nivalis_ 237
    _pantherina_ ~58~
    _phalloides_ 56, 57, ~58~
    _porphyria_ 56
    _rubescens_ 56, 57, ~58~
    _vaginata_ 57, ~58~
    _virosa_ 56

  _Amanitopsis_ 57

  _Amyloporia xantha_ 156

  _Anthracobia_ 220

  _Anthracobia macrocystis_ Plate 74 (221)

  _Apiocrea chrysosperma_ 248

  Aphyllophorales 21, 135

  _Armillaria_ 25

  _Armillaria mellea_ ~59~, 60, Plate 10 (61)

  _Astrosporina_ 84, 238

  _Auricularia_ 179

  _Auricularia judae_ 182
    _mesenterica_ 182, Plate 60 (183)

  Auriculariales 21, 179

  Auriscalpiaceae 158

  _Auriscalpium_ 76, 137, 158, 160

  _Auriscalpium vulgare_ 158, Plate 52 (159)

  _Ascobolus carbonarius_ Plate 74 (221)
    _furfuraceus_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Ascophanus microsporus_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Asterostroma laxum_ Plate 59 (177)

  _Athelia viride_ 236


  _Baeospora myosura_ 94

  _Bankera_ 160

  _Bankera fuliginoalbum_ 160

  _Bjerkandera_ 138

  _Bjerkandera adusta_ 146

  _Bolbitius_ 23

  _Bolbitius vitellinus_ ~207~, Plate 70
  (209)

  _Boletus_ 26, 28, 31, 32, 34, 35, 100

  _Boletus badius_ ~31~, 32, Plate 3 (33), 34
    _chrysenteron_ 248
    _edulis_ 32, 34, 35, 248
    _erythropus_ 32
    _parasiticus_ 35, Plate 64 (193), 247
    _purpureus_ 35
    _sphaerocephalus_ 35
    _subtomentosus_ 248

  _Botrydina vulgaris_ Plate 78 (235), 236

  _Botryobasidium conspersum_ Plate 59 (177)

  _Botryohypochnus isabellinus_ Plate 59 (177)

  _Bovista nigrescens_ ~190~

  _Byssonectria lateritia_ 247
    _viridis_ 247


  _Calocera_ 170, 180

  _Calocera cornea_ Plate 57 (169), 181
    _viscosa_ Plate 57 (169), 170, ~181~

  _Calocybe_ 101

  _Calocybe gambosum_ ~110~, Plate 32 (111)

  _Calvatia caelata_ 190
    _excipuliformis_ ~190~, Plate 63 (191)
    _saccata_ 190
    _utriformis_ ~190~, Plate 63 (191)

  _Camarophyllus_ 98

  _Cantharellus_ 24, 106, 136

  _Cantharellus cibarius_ 106, ~162~, Plate 54 (163), 246
    _friesii_ 162

  _Cantharellula_ 25

  _Chaetomium globosum_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Cheilymenia_ 214

  _Cheilymenia stercorea_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Chondrostereum purpureum_ 176

  _Chroogomphus_ 23, 36, 100

  _Chroogomphus corallinus_ 36
    _rutilus_ ~36~, Plate 4 (37)

  _Claudopus_ 22, 77, 102

  _Claudopus depluens_ 102
    _parasiticus_ 77, 102

  _Clavariadelphus_ 136

  _Clavariadelphus pistillaris_ 172, Plate 58 (175)

  _Clavaria_ 136, 173

  _Clavaria argillacea_ ~234~, Plate 78 (235)
    _fumosa_ 168, Plate 56, (167)
    _vermicularis_ Plate 56 (167), ~168~

  _Clavulina_ 136, 172

  _Clavulina cinerea_ 166
    _cristata_ 166, Plate 56 (167)
    _rugosa_ ~166~, Plate 56 (167)

  _Clavulinopsis_ 136, 168, 173

  _Clavulinopsis corniculata_ Plate 57 (169), ~170~, 173
    _fusiformis_ Plate 56 (167), 168
    _helvola_ Plate 56 (167), 168

  _Clitocybe_ 25, 242

  _Clitocybe clavipes_ 80, 81
    _fragrans_ 80
    _infundibuliformis_ 80, Plate 19 (81)
    _langei_ 80
    _nebularis_ 80

  _Clitopilus_ 22, 77

  _Clitopilus passackerianus_ 77
    _prunulus_ 77, 101

  _Collybia_ 26, 66, 86, 90, 92, 102, 120

  _Collybia maculata_ ~90~, Plate 24 (91)
    _peronata_ 92

  _Coltricia_ 138

  _Coniochaeta scatigena_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Coniophora_ 136

  _Coniophora puteana_ 156, Plate 51 (157)

  _Conocybe_ 23, 126

  _Conocybe dunensis_ ~242~, Plate 80 (241)
    _lactea_ 116
    _mairei_ 228, Plate 76 (229)
    _tenera_ ~116~, Plate 35 (117), 242

  _Coprinus_ 23, 128, 207, 212, 218, Plate 71 (213)

  _Coprinus angulatus_ 218, Plate 73 (219)
    _bisporus_ 212
    _cinereus_ ~211~, 214, 218, Plate 71 (213)
    _comatus_ ~126~, Plate 40 (127)
    _ephemerus_ 212
    _ephemeroides_ 212
    _filamentifer_ 214
    _fimetarius_ 211
    _lagopides_ 218
    _lagopus_ 211
    _macrocephalus_ 211
    _macrorhizus_ 211
    _miser_ 212
    _niveus_ 212
    _patouillardii_ 212
    _pellucidus_ 212
    _pseudoradiatus_ 211, 214
    _radiatus_ 211, 214
    _urticicola_ ~227~, Plate 76 (229)
    _vermiculifer_ 214

  _Coprobia_ 214

  _Coprobia granulata_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Cora pavonia_ 237

  _Cordyceps_ 206, 248

  _Cordyceps capitata_ Plate 69 (205), ~206~
    _militaris_ Plate 69 (205), ~206~
    _ophioglossoides_ Plate 69 (205), ~206~

  _Coriolus_ 139

  _Coriolus versicolor_ ~145~, Plate 46 (147)

  _Coriscium viride_ Plate 78 (235), 236

  _Corticium fuciforme_ 178

  _Corticiaceae_ 136

  _Cortinarius_ 23, 40, 42, 43, 44, 74, 237

  _Cortinarius_ sp. _Cortinarius_ 43
    _hydrocybe_ 43
    _phlegmacium_ 43
    _sericeocybe_ 43
    _telamonia_ 43

  _Cortinarius anomalus_ 237
    _armillatus_ 43
    _elatior_ 40
    _pinicola_ 40
    _pseudosalor_ ~40~, Plate 6 (41), 42
    _violaceus_ 44

  _Craterellus_ 24, 136

  _Craterellus cornucopoides_ ~164~, Plate 55 (165)
    _sinuosus_ 164, Plate 55 (165)

  _Crepidotus_ 22, 74, 102

  _Crepidotus mollis_ Plate 17 (75), ~77~, Plate 49 (153)

  _Cristella farinacea_ Plate 59 (177)
    _sulphurea_ Plate 59 (177)

  _Crucibulum_ 186, 196

  _Crucibulum laeve_ ~196~, Plate 66 (197)

  _Cryptoderma_ 137

  _Cryptoderma pini_ ~150~, Plate 48 (151)

  _Cyathipodia macropus_ Plate 68 (201), 203

  _Cyathus_ 186, 196

  _Cyathus olla_ 196, Plate 66 (197)
    _striatus 196_, Plate 66 (197)

  _Cystoderma amianthinum_ ~104~, Plate 29 (105)
    _carcharias_ 104
    _cinnabarinum_ 104
    _granulosum_ 104


  _Dacrymyces_ 180, 181

  _Dacrymyces deliquescens_ 180
    _stillatus_ ~180~, Plate 61 (185)

  Dacrymycetales 21, 180

  _Daedalea_ 137

  _Daedalea quercina_ Plate 46 (145)

  _Daedaleopsis_ 137

  _Daldinia_ 204

  _Daldinia concentrica_ ~204~, Plate 69 (205)

  _Datronia_ 138

  _Datronia mollis_ 145, Plate 46 (147)

  _Deconica_ 114


  _Eccilia_ 22, 102, Plate 28 (103)

  _Eccilia sericeonitida_ 102

  _Elaphomyces_ Plate 69 (205), 206, 237, Plate 81 (243)

  _Elaphomyces granulatus_ ~244~, Plate 81 (243)
    _muricatus_ 244, Plate 81 (243)

  _Entoloma_ 22, 100, 101, Plate 28 (103), 124

  _Entoloma clypeatum_ 101

  _Entoloma helodes_ ~232~, Plate 77 (233)

  _Exidia_ 158, 179

  _Exidia glandulosa_ ~184~, Plate 61 (185)


  _Femsjonia_ 180

  _Fibuloporia_ 138, 156

  _Fibuloporia vaillantii_ ~156~, Plate 51 (157)

  _Fistulina_ 137

  _Fistulina hepatica_ 152

  _Flammula_ 72, 217

  _Flammula carbonaria_ 217

  _Flammulaster granulosa_ ~228~, Plate 76 (229)

  _Flammulina_ 25

  _Flammulina velutipes_ ~66~, Plate 13 (67)

  _Fomes_ 137

  _Fomes fomentarius_ ~148~, Plate 48 (151), 249

  _Fomitopsis_ 137


  _Galerina_ 23, 224, 230

  _Galerina calyptrata_ 231
    _hypnorum_ ~230~, 231, Plate 78 (235)
    _mniophila_ 231
    _mycenopsis_ ~230~, 231
    _paludosa_ ~224~, Plate 75 (225)
    _sphagnorum_ 224, Plate 75 (225)
    _tibiicytis_ 224, Plate 75 (225)
    _vittaeformis_ 234, Plate 78 (235)

  _Ganoderma_ 137, 146

  _Ganoderma applanatum_ 146

  _Ganoderma europaeum_ 146, 148, Plate 47 (147)

  Gasteromycetes 21, 186, 187

  _Geastrum_ 186, 192

  _Geastrum rufescens_ 192, Plate 64 (193)
    _triplex_ 192

  Geoglossaceae 168

  _Geoglossum_ 172, 206

  _Geoglossum cookeianum_ Plate 57 (169)

  _Geopyxis carbonaria_ Plate 74 (221)

  _Gloeocystidium porosum_ Plate 59 (177)

  _Gloeophyllum_ 137

  _Gloeoporus_ 138

  _Gomphidius_ 23, 34, 36

  _Gomphidius glutinosus_ 36
    _maculatus_ 36
    _roseus_ 35, 36

  _Grifola_ 139

  _Gymnopilus_ 23

  _Gymnopilus penetrans_ ~72~, Plate 16 (73)

  _Gymnopilus sapineus_ 72

  _Gyromitra esculenta_ Plate 65 (201), 202

  _Gyroporus_ 26


  _Hapalopilus_ 138

  _Hebeloma_ 23, 82

  _Hebeloma anthracophila_ 218, Plate 73 (219)
    _crustuliniforme_ ~82~, Plate 20 (83)

  _Helicobasidium_ 179

  _Helminthosphaeria clavariae_ 166

  _Helvella_ 203

  _Helvella crispa_ ~202~, Plate 68 (201)
    _lacunosa_ 203, Plate 68 (201)

  Heterobasidion 137

  _Heterobasidion annosum_ ~150~, Plate 46 (147), Plate 43 (151)

  _Hirneola_ 179

  _Hirneola auricula-judae_ ~182~, Plate 60 (183)

  _Hirschioporus_ 138

  _Hygrocybe_ 25, 93, 100, 237

  _Hygrocybe calyptraeformis_ ~98~
    _chlorophana_ ~98~
    _cinerea_ 95
    _coccinea_ ~98~
    _conica_ ~98~, Plate 27 (99), 242
    _conicoides_ 242, Plate 80 (241)
    _flavescens_ 98
    _lacma_ 95
    _laeta_ 97
    _lilacina_ 237
    _metapodia_ ~100~
    _nitrata_ ~98~
    _nivea_ 95
    _ovina_ 98
    _pratensis_ ~95~, Plate 26 (96), 100

  _Hygrocybe psittacina_ ~97~, Plate 27 (99)
    _punicea_ ~98~, Plate 27 (99)
    _russocoriacea_ 95
    _subradiata_ 95
    _subviolacea_ 237
    _unguinosa_ ~98~
    _virginea_ 95

  _Hydnellum_ 137, 160

  _Hydnellum scrobiculatum_ 160, Plate 53 (161)

  _Hydnum_ 137, 160

  _Hydnum repandum_ 153, ~160~, Plate 53 (161)
    _rufescens_ 160

  _Hygrophoropsis_ 25

  _Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca_ ~106~, Plate 30 (109), 162, 249

  _Hygrophorus_ 25, 97, 98

  _Hygrophorus agathosmus_ 100
    _bresadolae_ ~100~
    _chrysaspis_ 98, Plate 27 (99), ~100~
    _hedrychii_ ~100~
    _hypothejus_ ~100~
    _pustulatus_ ~100~

  Hygrophoraceae 101, Plate 80 (241)

  _Hymenochaete_ 136

  _Hymenogaster_ 186, 243

  _Hymenomycetes_ 21

  _Hymenomycetous heterobasidiae_ 179

  _Hyphoderma setigera_ Plate 59 (177)

  _Hyphodontia_ 136

  _Hyphodontia arguta_ Plate 59 (177)
    _sambucii_ Plate 59 (177), 178

  _Hypholoma_ 24, 130, 222

  _Hypholoma capnoides_ 64
    _elongatum_ ~222~, Plate 75 (225)
    _ericaeum_ ~234~, Plate 78 (235)
    _fasciculare_ ~64~, Plate 12 (65) 130
    _lacrymabunda_ 130
    _polytrichi_ 222
    _sublateritium_ 64
    _velutina_ 130

  _Hypocrea pulvinata_ 248

  _Hypocopra equorum_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Hypomyces_ 248

  _Hypomyces lactifluorum_ 247


  _Inocybe_ 23, 84, 238

  _Inocybe asterospora_ 84, Plate 21 (85)
    _devoniensis_ 238, Plate 79 (239)
    _dunensis_ ~238~, Plate 79 (239)
    _geophylla_ ~84~
    var. _geophylla_ ~84~, Plate 21 (85)
    var. _lilacina_ 84
    _halophila_ 238, Plate 79 (239)
    _serotina_ 238, Plate 79 (239)

  _Iodophanus_ 214

  _Iodophanus carneus_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Inonotus_ 138

  _Inonotus hispidus_ ~142~, Plate 45 (143)


  _Laccaria_ 24, 242

  _Laccaria amethystea_ ~86~
    _bicolor_ ~86~
    _laccata_ ~86~, Plate 22 (87), 242, 249
    _maritima_ 242
    _proxima_ ~86~, Plate 22 (87), 242

  _Lacrymaria_ ~130~

  _Lacrymaria pyrotricha_ 130
    _velutina_ ~128~, Plate 41 (129), 130

  _Lactarius_ 46, 50, 52, 86, 237, 246, 247

  _Lactarius camphoratus_ ~52~
    _chrysorheus_ 52
    _deliciosus_ 52, 247
    _glyciosmus_ ~53~
    _lacunarum_ 237
    _quietus_ 52, ~53~
    _rufus_ 52, ~53~
    _torminosus_ 52, ~53~
    _turpis_ ~50~, Plate 8 (51)
    _uvidus_ 52

  _Laetiporus_ 138

  _Laetiporus sulphureus_ 140, Plate 44 (141), Plate 46 (147)

  _Lamprospora astroidea_ Plate 74 (221)

  _Langermannia gigantea_ ~190~, Plate 63 (191)

  _Lasiobolus ciliatus_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Lasiosordaria coprophila_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Leccinum_ 26, 28, 34, 100

  _Leccinum aurantiacum_ 34
    _quercinum_ 34
    _scabrum_ 27, Plate 1 (29), 34

  _Lentinellus_ 26, 74, 76, 137, 158

  _Lentinellus cochleatus_ Plate 17 (75), ~76~, 158

  _Lentinus_ 26, 74

  _Lentinus lepideus_ ~76~

  _Lenzites_ 137

  _Leotia lubrica_ 206

  _Lepiota_ 24, 104

  _Lepiota procera_ ~112~, Plate 33 (113)
    _rachodes_ 112

  _Lepista nuda_ ~131~, Plate 42 (132)

  _Leptonia_ 22, 102, Plate 28 (103), 227

  _Leptonia babingtonii_ ~227~, Plate 76 (229)
    _serrulata_ 102

  _Leptopodia elastica_ ~203~

  _Leucopaxillus_ 25

  _Limacium_ 98

  _Lycoperdon_ 186, 188

  _Lycoperdon perlatum_ ~180~, Plate 62  (189)
    _foetidum_ ~188~
    _pyriforme_ ~188~, Plate 62 (189)

  _Lyophyllum connatum_ 128
    _decastes_ 128


  _Marasmius_ 26, 92, 120, 228

  _Marasmius androsaceus_ ~92~, 120, 231, Plate 77 (233)
    _buxi_ ~92~, Plate 25 (93)
    _epiphylloides_ ~92~, Plate 25 (93)
    _graminum_ ~92~, Plate 25 (93)
    _hudsonii_ ~92~, Plate 25 (93)
    _oreades_ 118, Plate 36 (119), ~120~, Plate 37 (121)
    _perforans_ ~92~
    _peronatus_ 92
    _undatus_ ~92~

  _Melanogaster_ 243

  _Melanoleuca_ 25, 78

  _Melanoleuca melaleuca_ ~78~, Plate 18 (79)

  _Melanotus_ ~77~

  _Melanotus bambusinus_ 77
    _musae_ 77

  _Meripilus_ 139

  _Meripilus giganteus_ ~144~

  _Merulius_ 136, 154

  _Merulius tremellosus_ 154, Plate 50 (155)

  _Micromphale_ 92

  _Mitromorpha semilibera_ Plate 68 (201), 202

  _Mitrula paludosa_ 203

  _Monilia_ sp. Plate 74 (215)

  _Morchella_ 202

  _Morchella elata_ 220
    _esculenta_ ~200~, Plate 68 (201), 202

  _Multiclavula_ 236

  _Mutinus_ 186

  _Mutinus caninus_ ~194~, Plate 65 (195)

  _Mycena_ 25, 68, 74, 88, 102, 104, 247

  _Mycena bulbosa_ ~223~, Plate 75 (225)
    _epipterygia_ 237
    _galericulata_ ~68~, Plate 14 (69), 88
    _galopus_ ~88~
    _haematopus_ 88, Plate 23 (89)
    _leucogala_ 88, 217
    _olivaceo-marginata_ 237
    _sanguinolenta_ 88, Plate 23 (89)

  _Mycoacia_ 137

  _Myxomphalia maura_ 236


  _Naucoria_ 23, 226

  _Naucoria escharoides_ ~226~, Plate 76 (229)

  _Nectria cinnabarina_ 180

  _Neurospora sitophila_ 220, Plate 74 (215)

  _Nolanea_ 22, 102, Plate 28 (103), 124

  _Nolanea cetrata_ 102, 237
    _sericea_ ~122~, Plate 38 (123), 124
    _staurospora_ 101, 102, 122, Plate 38 (123)

  _Nyctalis_ 24, 247

  _Nyctalis asterophora_ Plate 81 (245), 246
    _parasitica_ Plate 81 (245), ~246~


  _Odontia bicolor_ 236

  _Oedocephalum Plate_ 74 (215)

  _Oidium conspersum_ Plate 59 (119)

  _Omphalina_ 25, 100, 102, 232

  _Omphalina ericetorum_ 232, Plate 7 (233), 236

  _Omphalina hudsoniana_ Plate 78 (235), 236
    _luteovitellina_ Plate 78 (235), 236
    _sphagnicola_ 223, Plate 75 (225), 236
    _umbellifera_ 232
    _velutina_ 236
    _wynniae_ 232

  _Oudemansiella_ 26

  _Oxyporus_ 137

  _Oxyporus populinus_ ~150~, Plate 48 (151)


  _Panaeolina_ 126

  _Panaeolina foenisecii_ ~124~, Plate 39 (125), 126

  _Panaeolus_ 23, 126

  _Panaeolus campanulatus_ 210
    _rickenii_ 126
    _semiovatus_ 208, Plate 70 (209), ~210~, 211
    _sphinctrinus_ 126, Plate 70 (209), ~210~, 211

  _Panellus_ 26, 74

  _Panellus stipticus_ Plate 17 (75), ~76~

  _Panus_ 26, 74

  _Panus torulosus_ ~76~

  _Paxillus_ 23, 100

  _Paxillus atrotomentosus_ 38
    _involutus_ ~38~, Plate 5 (39), 106
    _panuoides_ 38
    _rubicundulus_ 38

  _Peniophora_ 136

  _Peniophora lycii_ Plate 59 (177)
    _polygonii_ Plate 59 (177)
    _quercina_ Plate 59 (177)

  _Peziza_ 200, 204

  _Peziza badia_ Plate 67 (199), 200
    _echinospora_ 220
    _petersii_ 220
    _praetervisa_ 220, Plate 74 (215)
    _repanda_ Plate 67 (199), ~200~, 220
    _vesiculosa_ 216, Plate 67 (199)
    _violacea_ 220

  _Phaeolus_ 138

  _Phaeolus schweinitzii_ Plate 45 (143), ~144~

  _Phallus_ 186

  _Phallus hadriani_ 194
   _impudicus_ ~194~, Plate 65 (195)

  _Phellinus_ 137

  _Phellinus igniarius_ ~148~, Plate 48 (151)

  _Phellodon_ 160

  _Phellodon niger_ 160, Plate 53 (161)

  _Phlebia_ 136

  _Phlebia gigantea_ Plate 59 (177)

  _Pholiota_ 23, 217

  _Pholiota adiposa_ 62
    _aurivella_ 62
    _carbonaria_ 216, 217, Plate 73 (219)
    _highlandensis_ ~216~, 217, Plate 73 (219)
    _squarrosa_ ~60~, 62, Plate 11 (63)

  _Piptoporus_ 138, 248

  _Piptoporus betulinus_ ~142~, Plate 45 (143), Plate 46 (147)

  _Pistillaria_ 135

  _Pistillaria micans_ ~171~

  _Pleurotellus_ 74, 102

  _Pleurotaceae_ ~25~, 74

  _Pleurotus_ 74

  _Pleurotus ostreatus_ ~74~, Plate 17 (75)
    _ostreatus_ var. _columbinus_ 76

  _Pluteus_ 22

  _Pluteus atromarginatus_ 70
    _cervinus_ ~70~, Plate 15 (71)

  _Podospora_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Podospora curvula_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Polyporus_ 138, 139, 140, 156

  _Polyporus squamosus_ 77, ~140~, Plate 44 (141), 145

  _Poria_ 156

  _Porphyrellus_ 26

  _Pouzaromyces_ 227

  _Psathyrella_ 24, 130, 240, 242

  _Psathyrella ammophila_ Plate 79 (239), ~240~
    _flexispora_ Plate 79 (239), 240
    _pennata_ ~218~, Plate 73 (219)

  _Pseudohydnum gelatinosum_ 158, Plate 52 (159), 179

  _Pseudotrametes_ 139

  _Psilocybe_ 24, 126, 222, 240

  _Psilocybe semilanceata_ ~114~, Plate 34 (115)

  _Pycnoporus_ 138

  _Pyronema omphalodes_ 220, Plate 74 (221)


  _Radulomyces confluens_ Plate 59 (177)

  _Ramaria_ 136, 172

  _Ramaria ochraceo-virens_ Plate 57 (169), 170, 172

  _Rhizina undulata_ ~203~, 204, Plate 69 (205), 220

  _Rhizopogon_ 186, 243

  _Rhizopogon roseolus_ ~244~, Plate 81 (245)

  _Rhodopaxillus_ 131

  _Rhodophyllaceae_ 101

  _Rhodophyllaceae--spores_ Plate 28 (103)

  _Rhodophyllus_ 101

  _Russula_ 24, 45, 46, 50, 237, 246, Plate 81 (245)

  _Russula alpina_ 237
    _atropurpurea_ ~46~
    _betularum_ 46
    _claroflava_ 45, 46
    _cyanoxantha_ ~48~
    _emetica_ 46, ~48~
    _fellea_ ~48~
    _foetens_ ~48~
    _lutea_ 45
    _mairei_ ~49~
    _nigrescens_ ~49~
    _ochroleuca_ ~45~, Plate 7 (47)
    _sardonia_ 46
    _xerampelina_ ~49~
    _xerampelina_ var. _pascua_ 237

  _Saccobolus versicolor_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Sarcodon_ 160

  _Sarcodon imbricatum_ 160, Plate 53 (161)

  _Schizophyllum_ 26, 152

  _Schizophyllum commune_ ~152~, Plate 49 (153)

  _Scleroderma_ 35, 186, 247

  _Scleroderma aurantium_ 192, 247
    _citrinum_ ~192~, Plate 64 (193)
    _verrucosum_ 192, Plate 64 (193)

  _Sebacina_ 179

  _Sebacina incrustans_ 182

  _Sepedonium chrysospermum_ 248

  _Serpula_ 136

  _Serpula lacrymans_ ~154~, Plate 50 (155)

  _Sistotrema commune_ Plate 59 (177)

  _Sordaria_ 214

  _Sparassis_ 135

  _Sphaerobolus stellatus_ ~196~, Plate 66 (197)

  _Spinellus megalocarpus_ 247

  _Sporodina grandis_ 247

  _Sporormia_ 214, Plate 72 (215)

  _Stereum_ 136, 176

  _Stereum fasciatum_ 236
    _gausapatum_ 176
    _hirsutum_ Plate 59 (177), 178
    _purpureum_ 176
    _rugosum_ 176
    _sanguinolentum_ 176, 248

  _Strobilomyces_ 26, 35

  _Strobilomyces floccopus_ 35

  _Strobilurus_ 94

  _Strobilurus esculentus_ ~94~
    _stephanocystis_ Plate 25 (93), ~94~
    _tenacellus_ Plate 25 (93), ~94~

  _Stropharia_ 23, 208

  _Stropharia coronilla_ ~240~, Plate 80 (241), 242
    _semiglobata_ ~208~, Plate 70 (209)

  _Suillus_ 26, 31, 34, 100

  _Suillus aeruginascens_ 34
    _bovinus_ 34
    _grevillei_ ~28~, Plate 2 (30), 31, 34
    _luteus_ 31, 34


  _Tephrocybe anthracophila_ ~217~, Plate 73 (219)
    _atrata_ 217, Plate 73 (219)
    _palustris_ ~223~, Plate 75 (225), 247

  _Thelephora_ 136

  _Thelephora palmata_ 174, Plate 58 (175)
    _terrestris_ ~174~, Plate 58 (175)

  Thelephoraceae 174

  _Tomentella_ 174

  _Tomentella fusca_ Plate 58 (175)

  _Trametes_ 139

  _Tremella_ 158, 179

  _Tremella encephala_ 248
    _foliacea_ 184, Plate 61 (185), 248
    _mesenterica_ 184, Plate 61 (185), 248

  Tremellales 21, 179

  _Tremellodon gelatinosum_ 158

  _Trichophaea_ 220

  _Trichophaea woolhopeia_ Plate 74 (221)

  _Trichodelitschia bisporula_ Plate 72 (215)

  _Tricholoma_ 25, 74, 78, 110, 131

  _Tricholoma georgii_ 110
    _personatum_ 131

  _Tricholomataceae_ 104

  _Tubaria autochthona_ Plate 25 (93), 94
    _dispersa_ 94

  _Tuber_ 243

  _Tuber aestivum_ 244, Plate 81 (245)
    _melanospermum_ 243
    _rufum_ Plate 81 (245), 246

  _Tubulicrinis glebosus_ Plate 59 (177)

  Tyromyces 139, 146

  _Tylopilus_ 26

  _Tylosperma asterophorum_ Plate 59 (177)

  _Typhula_ 135, 173

  _Typhula erythropus_ 171


  _Volvariella_ 22

  _Volvariella surrecta_ 80, 247

  _Vuilleminia comedens_ Plate 59 (177)


  _Xylosphaera_ 172

  _Xylosphaera hypoxylon_ Plate 69 (205), ~206~
    _polymorpha_ ~204~, Plate 69 (205)


_Common Names_

  Agaric, fly 54

  _Amanita_ 56

  Basidiolichens 237

  Blewits, common 131
    wood 104, 131

  Blusher 56

  Bog-beacon 203

  Boot-laces 59

  Boletes 32
    bay-coloured 31
    brown birch 27
    larch 28

  Brittle-cap, bonfire 218
    sand-dune 240

  Candle snuff 76, 206

  Cap brown cone 116
    common funnel 80
    death 56
    false death 56
    hay brown 56
    ink, _see_ Inky cap
    liberty 114
    milk, _see_ Milk cap
    shaggy 128

  Chanterelle, common 106, 162, 246
    false 106, 162

  Clubs, fairy 76, 135, 166, 172
    wrinkled 166

  Cone cap, sand dune brown 242

  _Cortinarii_ 42

  Cramp balls 204

  Cup, elf 200
    scarlet elf 193

  Deceiver 86

  Destroying angel 56

  Earth-ball 186, 192
    common 192

  Earth fan 174

  Earth star 186, 192

  Earth tongue 168, 172

  Elephant’s ear 202

  Fairy ring 118, Plate 36 (119), 264
    champignon 120

  Fingers, dead man’s 204

  Fomes, root 150
    willow 148

  Fungus
    beef steak 152
    bird’s nest 186, 187, 196
    bracket 135
    candle snuff 76, 206
    cellar 156
    cup 198
    dry rot 154
    ear pick 158
    gum drop 206
    hedgehog 135, 158
    honey 59
    jelly 179
    orange peel 198
    pine fire 203
    resupinate 176
    scarlet caterpillar 206
    silver leaf (disease) 176
    stomach 186, 187
    split gills 152
    subterranean 243
    tinder 148
    tripe 182
    turban 202
    wet rot 156
    white wash 178
    yellow brain 184

  Ganoderma, common 146

  Grisette, common 57
    tawny 56

  Hedgehog, wood 160

  Helvella, slate grey 203

  Herald of the Winter 98

  Horn of Plenty 164

  _Hygrophorus_, parrot 97

  _Hygrophori_ 97

  Inocybe, common white 84

  Inky caps 212
    bonfire 218
    dung 211
    shaggy 128

  Jew’s ear 182

  Judge’s wig 128

  King Alfred’s Cakes 204

  _Lactarii_ 50

  Lawyer’s wig 126

  Lorel 202

  Marasmius 92

  Milk-caps 50
    coconut-scented 53
    curry-scented 52
    oak 53
    rufous 53
    saffron 52
    ugly 50
    woolly 53

  Miller, The 77

  Morel, common 200

  Mushroom
    butter 95
    Caesar’s 56
    common field 133
    cultivated 133
    fairy cake 82
    field 108
    horse 108
    oyster 74
    parasol 104, 112
    St. George’s 110
    soft slipper 77
    yellow staining 108

  Mycena, bonnet 68
    small bleeding 88

  Nolanea, silky 122

  Old Man of the Woods 35

  Panther 58

  Pâté de Foie Gras 243

  Pholiota, charcoal 216
    shaggy 60

  Pluteus, fawn 70

  Polypore
    birch 142
    giant 144
    many-zoned 145
    scaly 32, 140
    shaggy 142

  Puff ball 186
    giant 190
    stump 188

  Roll-rim, brown 38

  Rough Stalk 28
    birch 27

  Round head, dung 208

  Russula 45
    blackening 49
    common yellow 45
    emetic 48
    foetid 48
    geranium scented 48

  Shank, spotted tough 90
    velvet 66

  Slippery Jack 31

  Spike cap, pine 36

  Spindles
    golden 168
    white 168

  Stag’s horn 76, 172, 206

  Stinkhorn 186, 187, 194
    common 194
    dog’s 194

  Toadstool
    horse-hair 231
    pick-a-back 246
    yellow cow pat 207

  Truffle 243
    English 244
    false 186, 243
    French 243
    Hart’s 244
    perigord 243
    red 244

  Tuft, sulphur 64

  Weeping widow 128

  Witch’s butter 184




  Transcriber’s Notes


  Inconsistent formatting, spelling and hyphenation have been retained,
  except as listed below.

  The differences between the Table of Contents and the body text have
  not been standardised, except as mentioned below.

  The name Léville may be a variant or misspelling of (Joseph-Henri)
  Léveillé.

  Page 10, where man has distributed the habitat: possibly an error for
  ... disturbed the habitat.

  Page 49, changing soot-colour: possibly an error for changing to
  soot-colour.

  Page 68, to reclaim Helen his wife: Helen was his brother’s wife.

  Page 88, blotched age: there may be one or more words missing.

  Page 104, Many authorities prefer ...: a closing parenthesis is
  missing.

  Page 187, non-violent disposal of spores: possibly an error for
  dispersal.


  Changes made:

  Illustrations have been moved out of text paragraphs and some lists
  and tables.

  Some obvious minor misprints and typographical and punctuation errors
  have been corrected silently.

  Page 22: reference to key 24 changed to key 25

  Page 27: width 70-200 mm; length 20-30 mm changed to length 70-200 mm;
  width 20-30 mm

  Page 45: Stem: changed to _Stem_:

  Page 52: mm inserted after 20-50

  Page 95: H. subradiat changed to H. subradiata;

  Page 98: H. calytraeformis changed to H. calyptraeformis

  Page 158: Hyndum changed to Hydnum

  Page 174: 8-9 · 6-7 µm changed to 8-9 × 6-7 µm

  Page 202: Marchella changed to Morchella; Léveille changed to Léville

  Page 207: (i) added in section heading Fungi of dung and straw heaps

  Page 212: patoullardii changed to patouillardii

  Page 222: (a) added in section heading Sphagnum bogs

  Page 231: (a) added in section heading Moorland fungi

  Page 236: (b) added in section heading Mountain fungi and the
  so-called Basidiolichens

  Page 256: G. glutinosum changed to G. glutinosus; Marchella changed to
  Morchella

  Page 257: Hebeoloma anthracophilum changed to Hebeloma anthracophilum;
  Tephrocybe arthracophila changed to Tephrocybe anthracophila;
  Myxomphalina changed to Myxomphalia

  Page 262: closing parenthesis added after fruit-body

  Page 269, _Bulletin Trimestriel ..._ formatted as other journals

  Page 270: _Flore Analytique des Champignons_ Superiéurs de France
  changed to _Flore Analytique des Champignons Supérieurs de France_

  Index: some entries moved to proper alphabetical order

  Page 271: Baespora changed to Baeospora; Bjerkandera adjusta changed
  to Bjerkandera adusta; pantharina changed to pantherina

  Page 273: serioceocybe changed to sericeocybe

  Page 274: tibiicytis changed to tibiicystis

  Page 275: chrysorhaeus changed to chrysorheus

  Page 276: Myxomphalina changed to Myxomphalia

  Page 277: vesciculosa changed to vesiculosa

  Page 280: Paté de Foi Gras changed to Pâté de Foie Gras





End of Project Gutenberg's Identification of the Larger Fungi, by Roy Watling